Division     "BSKSO 
Section       .  V--  ~/  -^  I 

V.  2 


THE    BOOK    OF    PSALMS 

Vol.   II. 


THE 


BOOK     OF     PSALMS 

Translated  from  a  revised  text  with 
Notes  and  Introduction 


IN     PLACE    OF    A    SECOND    EDITION    OF    AN     EARLIER 
WORK    (1888)    BY    THE    SAME   AUTHOR 


BY 

T.  K.  CHEYNE,   D.Litt.,    D.D. 

ORIEL    FKOKESSOK    OF   THE    INTERPRETATION    OF    HOLY   SCRIPTURE    IN    THE    UNIVERSITY 
OF   OXFORD,    AND    CANON    OF    ROCHESTER 


IN   TWO    VOLUMES 
VOL.  IL 


THOMAS     WHITTAKER 

3  BIBLE    HOUSE,    NEW    YORK 
1904 


THE    PSALMS, 


PSALM    LXW. 

1  RiMETERs.  Faithful  Jews  (not  counting  those  of  the  wider  Diaspora)  are 
still  divided  into  two  sections — those  in  the  Jewish  land  and  those  in  cap^vity  in 
the  N.  Arabian  border-land.  Those  at  home  are  harassed  by  the  double  tyranny 
of  the  '.impious  ones  '  (faithless  Jews)  and  the  '  folk  of  the  Misrites. '  The  former 
even  go  as  far  as  to  encourage  the  aggression  of  the  N.  Arabians  (//.  13  f.).  The 
faithful  Jews,  however,  (here  as  in  Ps.  xii.)  rely  on  the  sure  prophetic  promise  of 
divine  intervention.  A  change  in  the  relation  of  captives  and  captors  is  at  hand  ; 
the  former  will  be  restored,  the  latter  will  be  destroyed  (cp.  Ps.  ii  ,  xviii.  &c.).  It 
is  the  Messianic  judgment. — The  psalm  is  incomplete  at  the  beginning.  It  has 
been  i)rovided  with  a  liturgical  preface  and  appendix,  which  assume  that  the 
wonderful  events  anticipated  have  taken  place.  Uuhm  speaks  of  the  'somewhat 
artificial  pathos  and  forced  expressions '  of  the  psaim.  ^Vith  the  clue  supi)lied  by 
so  many  preceding  psalms  it  is  not  difficult  to  remove  this  imputation  by  restoring 
approximately  the  original  text.  The  transposition  of  7'.  Ii  (which  may  perhaps 
be  taken  as  favoured  Ijy  the  H/D  in  f.  4  [but  see  crit.  n.],  though  it  is  sufficiently 
justified  by  other  considerations  [see  on  //.  9  f.]),  falls  in  with  the  theory  that  the 
original  psalm  was  composed  of  quatrains.  It  was  first  suggested  by  Olshausen 
(1853).  Ewald  and  Del.  refer  the  psalm  to  the  Assyrian  episode  in  the  reign  of 
Hezekiah  (cp.  the  title  in  G  ?)  ;  Ilitz.  and  Olsh.  to  the  MaccakT:an  period  (like 
the  following  psalms).     But  see  on  Pss.  xlvi.,  xlviii. 

Deposited.    Of  Ethan  the  Ezrahite.    Marked.    Of  Asaph.    Marked,   i 

I  To  thee  we  give  thanks,  O  God  of  Jacob,  2 

We  chant  praise  to  all  thy  wonders. 

{Fragment  of  Psalm . ) 

*  *         #         * 

*  *         *         * 

For  [thou  hast  promised],  '  I  will  punish  Edom.  3 

The  folk  of  the  Misrites  I  will  judge. 

'  Missur  and  all  its  inhabitants  tremble,  4 

The  dwellings  of  the  Edomites^  rock. 

All  the  horns  of  the  wicked  will  I  cut  off,  1 1 

10         +But+  the  horns  of  the  righteous  shall  be  lifted  up.' 

'  (The  dwellings  of)  Jerahmeel. 
II.  Ii 


2  THE    PSALMS. 

To  the  impious  I  say,  '  Rage  not,'  5 

To  the  wicked,  '  Lift  not  up  the  voice  ; 
Lift  not  up  your  voice  to  the  Aramites,  6 

Nor  speak  insolently  in  Missur. 

'  For  God  will  bring  them  from  Arabia,  ^  7 

From  the  wilderness  of  Jerahmeel.- 

For  the  Jerahmeelites  will  he  judge,  8,  9 

The  Cushites,  the  Misrites  also,  will  he  destroy. '^ 

{^Liturgical  Appendix^ 

As  for  me,  I  will  give  thanks  to  Yahwe,  lO 

20         I  will  chant  praise  to  the  God  of  Jacob. 

I.    Ood    of  Jacob.    So/.  20;  cp.  Marduk's   head),'  quoted  in  Del.  Ass. 

XX.  2   (xxiv.   6),  Ixxvi.  7.  — 7.   JJisstir,  fflFB,  p.  i^- 
&c.  The  perfect  tenses  are  anticipative. 

The  approach   of  the  Judge  will  throw  II.     The  Impious,  specially  used 

N.     Arabia     into     consternation    (cp.  as  a  class-name  for  those  Jews  who  had 

Hab.  iii.  7).  thrown    off  legal    restraints.      See    on 

9  f     The    transposition   enables    us  "iv.  i,    and   cp.  xxvi.    4,  1.    iS    (corr. 

both  to  avoid  a  faulty  exegesis  (as  if  texts),  Ixxni.  3.— 11-18.  The  party  or 

Israel  claimed  to  cut  off  the  '  horns  '  of  faction  of  the  '  nnpious  '  is  warned  not 

enemies),  and  to  keep  the  first  person  to  go  on  hke  raging  madmen,  trampling 

in    VlMi    (instead   of  emending   into  law  and  religion  under  foot,  and  not  to 

..._.  _T       r,\    ,,  ,     ,-r.   ,     .      T,7  ..  continue  to  speak  insolently  of  the    ews 

V^^jT).     Shall  he  bf ted  tip.     We  meet  ■     .u    1      1     r  .1       ivr-     ■.  1   t       1 

^.r    \  r         .■  ■        ■  in  the  land  of  the   Misrites  and    |erah- 

with_  the  same  figurative  expression  in  ,,,eelites,encouraging  these  fierce  peoples 

Ixxxix.   25,   xcu.    II,   cxlvm     14  ;^  cp.  .^^  ^^^^.^.  essi^,,,^     ^^^  ,„„„ ^,1  ^viH 

lob    xvi.    !■;,    I    ^lacc.   11.    40   (Kai  ovk  ,        .  ,       i     ,.       ^-  -i.  i      r      .1 

•i"  ,-"-,,  ^  -\         1  be  changed  ;  destruction  wilt  be  for  the 

toaiKaf  Kfoas  rw   auai,rw\iu)   and   espe-  .     °        ^       .■        ^      ,i_    •      1,  r 

.  ,,      ^/         .'..    '    '        J:'       ,        .S  enemies,  restoration  to  their    home  for 
cially    Dt.   xxxiii.    17.       Cp.    also    the  '  ^ 

Assyrian    phrase,    'A    cap    («-.0   with  the    Jews.  -  14.     pj"iy     "ini  •       Cp. 

high  horns,  a  cap  of  dominion  (I  set  on  xxxi.  19,  xciv.  4,  i  S.  ii.  3. 

Ci-itical  Notes,  i.  Omit  the  superfluous  Ijmn  ,  and  for  DTl'^'hi 
^llpT  read  2p^>"'~\"i'7i^ .  It  is  quite  inadequate  to  change  -fJD'i^r  2Tlp1 
to  l^l^'l  '^^"}P^5  ^^''^^*  ^y-'  ^^^  ^^-^  Che.fi),  Kau.,  We.,  or  ^y^'^J)^ 
"yyi^l,  ^vith  Street  (1790)  and  Duhm  (1899),  following  G  S.— 2.  M 
nSD .     Street  and  Duhm  ^^-JSD  .     Rather  1^0 ,  of  which  -^yv  —  l^T 

is  a  fragment.      Before  'D3  insert  "':'3   with    C— 5.  Insert  m^l  •— M 

°  T  T    :  -  . 

13711^  npS  1  which  being  so  '  singular'  Duhm  will  not  '  venture  to  alter,' 

but  which  Gratz  rightly  pronounces  '  inexplicable.'     Read  D^^^J  n^DJ^  • — 

6.  IDD'vi)?^  DH'*^^!^  ^J^<  (cp.  Iviii.  2).     The  separation  of  ^JS  from  its  verb 

is  awkward.     Read  D^~1a*.2  Dl^"]- 

7.  M  y"lJ<~D''!i;!D3  •  The  obscurity  of  this  clause  is  w-ell  known, 
with  V.  3,  in  its  corrected  form  before  us,  the  difficulty  of  v.  4  disappears. 

'  This +means+ Ishmael.  -  This +means+ Jerahmecl. 

2  All  the  wicked  of  the  land. 


PSALM    LXXV.  3 

Read   liiD   I^QJ.— 8.    M    nm^y  'r\:i2n  OiSV     OJ^<  in   v.   4,   with 

\  .  T  T     V       -•:-••     T       . 

^JJ<  in  TJ.  3,  is  improbable,  and  ^j~13Dj"1  is  not  the  right  word  with  'pp . 
For  'jn  Gr.  reads  ^Jljjn  ;  cp.  G  farepiuxra.  Restore  rather  ^y^ 
D"^'7^^  ni:3l^9  (O  frono',  n  from  W).—rhD  from  ':'N:2ni^  =  D11NV 

II.     Read  I'^bnnr^"'?^^   Wb^t}  m:^^  (cp.  on  I.  6,  liii.  2).— 12  ff. 
:        :•        -  •t:-t:-t 

M  1~lp ,  DDJ"1p'     To  harmonize  with  /.  14,  we  can  hardly  help  reading 
J  .     '  v'rr         v:    :- 
7ip  .      For  the  phrase,   see   Gen.    xxxix.    18. — M    "1J^1ii3  >   'with  neck 

thrown  back'  (cp.  Job  xv.  26'  ? .'').  G,  however,  has  Kara  tov  Qeov,  i.e.  m^^l  ; 
G  constantly  {e.g.  Dt.  xxxii.  4,  15,  &c.,  Isa.  xxx.  29)  renders  the  divine 
title  mji  by  Gtoy.  Hence  Baethgen  {Th.  Stud.  u.  Krit.  1880,  p.  762), 
Che.'i',  Now.,  Kau.,  following  Cappellus,  would  restore  m^H,  which  is  the 
more  plausible  if,  with  Baethgen,  we  take  QTII^  in  v.  6a  to  be,  like  "IliJ , 
a  designation  of  God,  =  D^(!2^  in  New  Hebrew.  Still  IHH,  for 
DN~t'?}<~7y  ,  is  not  a  natural  expression,  and  the  context,  as  we  shall  see 
when  V.  7  has  been  emended,  leads  us  to  expect  in  7'.  6  the  names  of 
peoples  or  countries.  It  so  happens  that  we  find  elsewhere  DIHilS  con- 
cealing D'''^^i^J^")''  (see  on  vii.  8,  Ivi.  3),  and  probably  lyii  or  lyv^ 
representing  "l'li{*3  (Gen.  xiii.  10,  xiv.  2,  xix.  22  ;  see  Enc.  Bib.,  'Zoar'). 
The  passage  does  not  become  fully  significant  till  we   read,    in  /.  13, 

D-ianS*':'  for  □ilD'?  ,  and  in  /.  14  IViiD^  for  "IJ^Vji^  •     For  the  phrase 

.  — :-  T-  ,      •  .  •   :  T-  : 

in  /.  13  cp.  Isa.  xui.  2,  Qn?  Pip  l,'3''"in  . 

V  T  '  •  T 

1 5  f     M  3~li^Dr:D1  4^'iia^  hi':'  '•3  ,  '  for  not  from  the  east  nor  from 

the  west.'    Read  rather,  2ipr3  DJ^^JiX'^  Phi  ^3  •     The  reason  will  appear 

presently.— M  DHrT  "IJlia^'hiPT  (so  Baer,  following  T,  Kimhi,  MSS., 

.  T        T  .  •  •  : 

the  two  Soncino  Bibles,  and  other  edd.).     Ginsburg,  however,  following 

most  vss.,  Ibn  Ezra,  and  MSS.,  reads  D"'~irT  ~1211Qi!2  .  and  most  moderns 

•  T        -   :  ..  .  . 
agree  with  him.     Yet  if  these  are  the  only  possibilities,  the  former  is  to 

be  preferred  ;  so  Hupf.,  Kautzsch,  Driver.     For  plainly  Qnn  corresponds 

to  D^n*,  and  must,  therefore,  mean  '  elevation.'    Besides  (2)  what  can  '  the 

•T 

wilderness  of  the  mountains '  mean  ?  Had  the  writer  meant  the  Negeb,  he 
would  surely  have  said  the  Negeb.  Wellhausen's  D^ini^l  is  surely  a 
desperate  expedient.  And  (3)  the  sentence  is  incomplete  ;  we  have  to 
supply  something,  r._^.  tD3!i^Q-  But  is  such  an  omission  probable?  A 
little  reflection,  however,  will  suggest  a  remedy.  Since  '  Jerahmeel'  is 
the  leading  figure  among  Israel's  enemies,  must  not  both  D^PH  and  D"*!^ 
be  mutilations  of  '^Si^^nP''  (cp.  D^IH  and  JPi;:2^P"').  The  phrase  '  the 
wilderness  of  Jerahmeel '  is  as  natural  as  the  phrase  '  the  wilderness  of 
the  mountains'  is  unnatural.  The  t)  in  IpT  represents  Phi  in  PJ^^FIPV 
We  now  turn  back  to  /.  15,  and  finding  3")J?*2,  at  once  discern  that  it 
represents  2iy;t3  ■     The  remaining  corrections  in  /.  15  are  self-evident 

'  Here,  obviously,  we  should  read  y^P373  .     Cp.  Pi3J3  in  the   '[,  xvi.  14. 


4  THE    PSALMS. 

to  a  keen  critic  ;  so  also  is  DTT7i<  for  J*j'^T  in  /.  i6.  No\v,  too, 
D^T  nn  '7^3'Z^^  n?  becomes  transparent.  It  is  a  combination  of  two 
glosses  "on  "il^  'and  Qnn(?)  respectively,  viz.  bii]?i2'p''  HT  and 
'?h<pn"T'  nt.     Parallel  is  the  gloss  in  2  S.  \iv.  13  (see  Cr//.  Bib.). 

17  f.  M  tD3'ii^  □'n'?J^"''3  •  Not  enough  for  a  trimeter.  Duhm 
would  read  M^IH  mn^~^3,  but  this  is  one  of  those  superficial  cures  which 
are  much  to  be  deprecated.  Again  and  again  we  have  found  □n'?,  DH/, 
and  DM'^^kS'  supplanting   "^J^l^jm^  or  □''':'XDm^ .     Read  probably  here 

Verse  9  is  full  of  difficulty.  What  is  T^H  ^^"'T  (Pasek  follows)  ?  And 
what  Tjpp  n':'.::  ?  (TJDD  is  a  aV.  Xey).  And  wliat  H-TO  lilj;!?  (l^^SH ,  '  to 
pour  out '  occurs  nowhere  else).     What  does  the  suffi.x  in  rf^I^tl^  refer 

T     VT  :       . 

to?  Why  ^Jlii;^  12{D^?  Various  expedients  have  no  doubt  been  devised 
(e.g.  G  S  read  ^T~'7^<  m-T^,  but  the  psalmists  would  not  thank  the 
critics  for  crediting  them  with  so  little  style.  Experience  warns  us  that 
we  have  here  a  specimen,  on  a  large  scale,  of  editorial  ingenuity  in 
dealing  with  a  mass  of  dittograms  and  corruptions.  I  will  endeavour  to 
restore  an  earlier  form  of  the  text,  omitting  V~lN~''y>^1  73  (which  is 
clearly  a  gloss)  and  mere  dittograms.  DH^irjJ'^M  D'vlO  7h}*JH'T'  ^^13  O 
jITTIi^V  (Notice  that  '•3  =  ^,  and  that  "JD;:)  =  "];:^'3 ,  a  regular  cor- 
ruption of  Qti;3  ,  see  on  cxx.  5,  and  cp.  on  D3li> ,  Ix.  8).  Remove  the 
dittograms,  and  we  get  two  trimeters  (see  translation).  P)h}  for  'T[M  is  due 
to  Olshausen. 

19.      M   DT'yt'  l^ilh}  .      G,  however,  a-ydKKia(To\i.ai   (t'''JS)    fts   rhv  alojva 
T     :  •-        _  .  T 

(so  Bii.,  Kau.,  Beer).      Neither  is  natural,  especially  as  a  parallel  to  /.  20. 

Read   probably   miT''?    mihi  (an  imperfect  71  in    HIIN  became  J   in 

Aramaic  script  ;  D^1'7^^  ,  written  instead  of  mil'',  became  D'?j,')- 


PSALM    LXXVI. 

i  Ri METERS.  Anticipations  of  \'aluvt-'s  crowning  mercy — the  hiuniliation  of 
Israel's  oppressors.  It  is  a  companion-psalm  to  Pss.  xlvi.  and  xlviii.;  cp.  also 
xviii.  44-46.  No  Asaphite  psalm  is  equally  vivid  and  vigorous  ;  it  is  '  keen  as 
sword-blades  flashing  down  upon  Syrian  helms.'  Indeed  if  we  work  upon  the 
traditional  text,  it  is  jilausible  to  regard  this  as  a  Maccab;x;an  psalm.  Ilitziij  and 
Olshausen  tht)uglu  of  the  victory  of  Judas  over  Seron  (l  Mace.  iii.  13-24),  and 
Duhm  remarks  that,  as  'Salem  '  in  7'.  3  shows,  the  psalm  is  later  than  Gen.  xiv. 
18-20,  'which  verses  are  an  insertion  in  one  of  the  latest  chapters  of  the  Pen- 
tateuch.' We  can  hardly^  liesitatc,  however,  on  the  analogy  of  so  many  other 
passasjes  in  the  Psalter,  to  restore  in  t7>.  4,  6  f.,  11  f.  the  names  of  the  N.  Arabian 
enemies  of  the  Jews,  and  to  accept  such  a  doubtful  form  as  'Salem  '  (for  'Jerusalem') 
on  the  sole  authority  of  a  proper  name  in  the  traditional  text  of  Gen.  xiv.  (which 
is  full  of  corruption  in  the  proper  names),  is  extremely  bold.  Kimhi's  view  that 
the  psalm  refers  to  the  wars  of  'Gog  and  Magog'  (Ezek.  xxxviii.,  f.),  is  not 
without  an  element  of  truth. 


PSALM    LXXVI.  5 

Deposited.    Of  the  Ishinaclitcs.    Marked.    Of  Asaph.    Marked.        I 

I  Yahwe  has  made  himself  known  in  Judah,  2 

His  name  is  great  in  Jerusalem  ; 

Yahwe  has  rescued  his  sanctuary,  3 

His  dwelling-place  he  has  succoured  ; 

He  has  broken  the  quiver  of  Cusham,  4 

The  shield  and  the  sword  of  Jerahmeel. 

O  Yahwe  !  fearful  art  thou,  5 

[And]  venerable  is  the  place  of  thy  glory.  • 
The  Ishmaelites  fled  in  amazement,  6 

10         The  men  of  Jerahmeel  were  found  no  more  ; 

At  thy  stern  voice,  O  God  of  Jacob  !  7 

Jerahmeel  and  Cusham  were  routed. 

Fearful  art  thou,  and  who  can  stand  8 

Before  thee  for  the  violence  of  thine  anger  ? 

From  heaven  thou  didst  proclaim  sentence,  9 

Earth  feared,  and  held  its  peace, 

When  Yahwe  arose  for  judgment,  10 

To  succour  all  the  sufferers  in  the  land. 

All  the  Jerahmeelites  shall  serve  him,  1 1 

20         The  remnant  of  Maacath  shall  do  homage  unto  him, 

The  Ishmaelites  shall  bow  down  unto  him,  12 

All  the  Cushites  shall  bring  him  tribute, 
+Who  is+  terrible  to  those  of  Jerahmeel,  13 

Fearful  to  the  kings  of  Missur. 

I  f.  Cp.  xlviii.  2,  4. — 3  f.    Cp.  xlvi.  xxix.  5,  7  f.,  a  late  insertion  of  eschato- 

5,  xlviii.    4.-5    f.    Cp.  xlvi.    10.    77ie  logical  purport.— 11.  Hl^,! ;  cp.  i\.  6 

<jtiiver   of  Cusham.     Cp.    Jer    v.    16,  j^^.jjj  j^^^_         ^^.^^  ^^ 

Their  quiver  IS  an  open  sepulchre.     In 

the  context  of  tliis  passage  the  people  <■     /^        1  ■ 

comhig  from  Saphon  (not  '  the  north')  ^5  »•    «-P-  xlvi.  7-  — 18.   Yl»>*~-1Jj;. 

and   from  the  utmost  part  of  the  land  Same  phrase  in   M  of  Isa.  xi.  4,  Zeph. 

(not  the  earth)  are  the  Jerahmeelites.  ii.  3j  -^"i-  viii.  4,  Job  xxiv.  4.     In  Am. 

Cp.  also  Jer.  xlix.  35,  '  I  will  break  the  and  Job  Kr.  gives  ^^jp. — 19-24.   See 

bow  of  Elam'  (miswritten  for  '  lerah-  -.        .„  ,  ,"•"'.  ,.,,     „      . 

,  ,>.      t^        )•  r,-,       (  D   -^  1       )  crit.  notes,  and  cp.  Ixvni.(-),  //.  26-2Q, 

meel  ).     Cp.    J'.fu:    Bib.,    'Prophet,  ,       .     ,,)    ;    ,,  c  i*-        .?       ,-^' 

,.<•        '  ^       A  f  ■/■      nn-      T>    .  •  Ixxxix.C,  /.  II  f. — 20.  Maacath.     See 

^§  40,  49,  and  tritica  BilHica,  Part  1.  c-       u-i    iw        u  •   >  n-u  .  <  ai  11 

'^  t  '  ^^'  '  Enc.htb.,'  Maacah,  11.   That 'Maacath 


Smj  .     So    xlvii.    3.  —  9.  IDJ      and 'Jerahmeel' are  ultimately  synony 

.      Cp.    xlviii.    6.  -  10.     Were      "^""■''  "^^'^  ""^  ""''P''''^'-^  "^V   '  •^^'''''''^''''' 

represents    only    a    part    of  the    regior 
found  no  more  =  disappeared.    Cp.  Isa.      occupied  anciently  by  the  Jerahmeelites 


T    T 


Critical  Notes.  (Title.)  G  adds  Trpoy  rhv  'Aa-avpiov  (attested  by 
Thcodorct).  Did  the  original  of  this  mean  '  concerning  the  Asshurites 
(of  North  Arabia)'? 


O  THE    PSALMS. 

I  f.  M  yiij .  But  the  tlicmc  of  the  psahn  is  not  that  \'ah\ve  is 
constantly  known  in  Judah  by  the  manifestations  of  his  might,  but  that  a 
special  manifestation   has  recently  taken  place.     Read  J/Tij  (xlviii.  4), 

with  T,  Gr.— M  ':'^}^■;^■'3  (so  too  the  vss.).    '  Israel' and  '  Judah,' it  is 

••  t:  : 
assumed,  ha\e  become  synonymous.  In  the  parallel  psalm  (xlviii.),  how- 
ever 'Judah '  and  '  Zion  '  fill  up  the  canvass,  nor  can  we  in  the  statement 
of  the  theme  dispense  with  'Zion  '  or  'Jerusalem.'  It  is  true,  according 
to  M,  '  Salem'  (=  Jerusalem.'')  and  Zion  arc  mentioned  in  the  next  verse, 
but,  as  we  shall  see,  this  is  more  than  doubtful.  It  seems  highly  probable 
that  7S"1li,'^^  is  a  scribe's  slip  for  D'^li'l"!^^  ,  as  in  Jen  xxiii.  6  (cp. 
x.xxiii.  16),  li.  49,  Zech.  ii.  2  (dittogr.),  xi.  i,  Mai.  ii.  11  (diltogr.).  Lam. 
ii.  5  (so  Gr.,  MGIV/,  1880,  pp.  97-101),  to  which  add  Zcph.  iii.  14, 
according  to  the  Heb.  text  presupposed  by  G. 

3  f.      M  i3D    U^V'2,   \T'1  •      Each    of  these   words    is    improbable. 
\        ••  T  :        •  :- 
First,  why  TT^I  ?     Olshausen  renders,  'And  so  (consequently)  his  lodging 

is  continually';    Ewald,  'for    (^  in  fact)  his   lodging   was    set.'     Both 

renderings  imply  the  faulty  reading  ^"T^J,  and  both  statements  tell  us 

something  which  is  altogether  superfluous  for  the  development  of  the 

theme  of  the  psalm.     Next  as  to  DaZ^  •      Josephus,  it  is  true,  asserts 

{A>iL  vii.  3,  2)  that  2oXv/xa  was  the  original  form  of  'ifpoo-oXv/xa.     This, 

however,  is  certainly  incorrect,  nor  have  we  even  any  sufficient  reason 

(apart  from  Ps.  Ixxvi.  3  and  the  supposed  mention  of  '  Jerusalem '  as 

'Salem'  [but  see  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Melchizedek,'  §  3J  in  Gen.  xiv.  iS)  that  a 

shortened  form  '  Salem' existed.     G  here  gives  eV  flprjvr].     If  the  general 

structure  of  v.  yz  in  M  is  correct  it  would  be  better  to  read  r\7TV3,  (cp. 

2aXj;/Li,  G°  xli.  5,  where  M  has  i^U),  but  see  £nc.  Bib.,  '  Shiloh  ') ;  so  Gr. 

Lastly,  as  to  130  .     Certainly  we  find  i3D,  as  Kr.  in  xxvii.  5,  11  i'?n?^  , 

but  the  reading  is  very  doubtful.     Nor   is  there  any  reason    why    tiie 

humble   designation   '  booth '   should    be   applied    here   to   the    temple. 

Rejecting,  therefore,  M's  text,  except  as  material  for  the  cri  tic  to  work 

upon,  what  do  the  parallel  psalms,  xlvi.  (z'.  5)  and  xlviii.  {v.  4)  suggest? 

The  answer  cannot  be  doubtful.     We  have  to  read  Vll^lpilD  T^H  mrT'  • 

T  t':  . 
The  loss  of  the  "T  in  'pl^  led  to  the  misreading  i3D  ;  then  the  feeling 

that  'Jerusalem'  must  be  somewhere  mentioned  led  to  the  further 
misreadings  ti71i^^  for  the  indistinctly  written  Tjt'iin  and  T\'^^  for  the 
often  misread  group  of  letters  which  forms  the  Tetragrammaton. — M 
]PjJll  inji37?Dl.  In  civ.  22,  Am.  iii.  4,  nJ^D  means  a  den.  In  Deut. 
xxxiii.  27  and  Jer.  xxi.  13  the  text  is  doubtful.  On  the  analogy  of  the 
preceding  correction  read  p^*ii,'n  Vj~1J3l17.3T  (xlvi.  5,  cp.  xliii.  3)  ;  cp.  next 
note  (on  HQli').     2.  came  from  ,1 ,  as  in  /.  2  ;  ](2)  from  ]; . 

5.      M    j"l^'P~''S::'1   "13'X'   nar.      "in-ir    is   certainly   right.      The 

V    IT      ..  :     •  -  .  T  T  -   • 

disarming  of  the  enemy,  followed  by  the  destruction  of  their  warlike 
implements,  is  the  imagined  occasion  of  the  psalm.     But  why  ilQ"i'  ? 


PSALM    LXXVI.  7 

« 
First,  why  is  the  long  form  preferred  ?  And  next,  the  sense  is  not  clear. 
Does  the  poet  mean  that  it  was  in  the  temple,  as  the  centre  of  Yahwo's 
effectual  working,  that  he  virtually  defeated  the  enemy  (01.,  Hu.) .''  or 
that  the  action  described  took  place  just  without  the  walls  of  Jerusalem? 
Or,  reading  yilj  in  /.  i,  is  the  HDID  temporal  (cp.  xiv.  5,  Hupf. ;  xlviii.  7, 
Gr.  alt.)  ?  And  what  is  /1Z'p"^3il/n  ?  G  renders  v.  4a  f/cel  awfTpiyj/ev  tu 
KpaTT)  Toiv  To^ai',  but  a  variant  at  the  end  of  the  verse  (in  B,  but  not 
supported  by  B''^^JRT)  runs.  eW  a-vvKXdaei  rii  Kepara.  T  gives  ^TIJ 
V/lti/pT ,  'arrows  and  bows.'  Most  moderns  explain, 'the  lightnings  of 
the  bow,'  i.e.  the  swift-flying  arrows.  But  that  PjJtf"!  ^'lightning '  is 
uncertain  (see  on  Ixxviii.  48),  and  the  rhetorical  phrase  supposed  here  by 
most  is  not  in  the  style  of  the  ps?dmists.  Beyond  doubt  ^Bti'")  is  a  cor- 
ruption of  a  name  for  some  warlike  implement  (see  v.  -[d).  Herz  suggests 
jTii,'pT  nSli'J^  ;  '  the  error  is  due  to  dittography,  the  repeated  T  having 

V   TT  T  :    -  . 

supplanted  the  ciuiescent  J>} .'      G's  Kparr^  or  Kepara  may,  he  thinks,  have 

come  from  (/)(i/jeVpai/.     Half  of  this  is  right,  but  we  expect  the  name  of 

Israel's  enemies  ;  and  if  PIDntTJ  in  v.  4^  comes  from  '^NI^nT ,  DU^p 

must  come  from  D\i^3  (so  also  in  Isa.  xxi.  17,  Ixvi.  19,  Jer.  xlvi.  9).    Read 

D^3    DBpa   "lUTi^.     r\i21D  is  cither  a  corrupt  dittogram  or  a  corrupt 

correction '  of  pv^'n    {V   and    '.:    confounded).— 6.    M     nr^nV'^T .     But 

.  tt:.  ■ 

'^'2   "^^'i)  is  an  impossible  phrase.     In  Hos.  i.  7,  ii.  20,  where   ni^n?/!^ 

appears  to  mean  '  warlike  equipment,'  the  text  is  corrupt  ;  in  all  these 

passages,  as  well  as  in  Zech.  ix.  10,  x.  4,  n^3n'7*J,  like  n'7i3  (in  h'^lS  ''J), 

is  one  of  the  many  distortions  of '7^ii^^"^'' ■     So  too  JIVZH'^D  in  xlvi.  10. 

'  The  shield  and  the   sword    of  Jerahmeel '    corresponds   here    to    '  the 

quiver  of  Cusham.'     [For  Houtsma's  mythologizing    interpretation,  see 

ZATIV,  1902,  p.  329] 

7.  M    r\r\Vi   lis:  :  rhU-      ■^^^<J  is  impossible,  for  -nj^  has  no 

Niphal  (Job  xxxiii.  30  is  corrupt  ;  see  Budde).      G,  (pmrl^eis  ;  'A,  (pcoris-- 

p-os  ;  J  lumen  ;  all  presupposing,  neither  "lij<^3  nor  ~)J,  but  the  equation 

"lIX^^Aram.   linj,   'light.'      2,   ir;i(^avi]'i  el.      But    /.    13    shows    that 

M~)1j  is  right;  and  G  T  presuppose  this  reading  in  both  passages.     So 

Kr.,  01.  doubtfully,  Gr.,  Hu.,    Kau  ,   &c. ;    Hi.,    wrongly,   "TlhiJ  •     il'PD 

•   '  .  .  .  '  T  :  V 

comes  from  Q'*n'?hi  (as  in  Ixviii.  ;i^,  &c.),  i.e.  TVsTV . 

8.  M    C^"^[;3    ^n~inQ    ^^^^i  ;    C^   davpaarrcos  dno  opeoov  (ilcovtiov.        Hitz. 

•.•|T       ••:"••  •  ~ 

thinks  that   the  scribe  thoughtlessly  wrote  ?1~1lD  as  a  synonym  for  iy , 

as  if  "ip  meant  '  booty,'  a  view  which  Bi.,  Che.''',  Bii.,  Kau.,  Du.  accept. 
But  if  mountains  are  meant  at  all,  it  must  be  the  mountains  around 
Yahwe's  sanctuary  that  are  meant.  G's  alwvMv  can  only  be  a  guess,  and 
this  of  itself  suggests  that  the  translator's  Heb.  text  was  corrupt.  Cer- 
tainly our  traditional  text  is  so  too  ;  even  U}1p  ■'"lliTJ  would  not 
produce  a  clear  and  acceptable  sense.  The  key  is  supplied  by  lxxxix.4o(see 
crit.  note),  where  Jl"'"!^  (cp.  ^IID)  certainly  represents  "Jjl  IJ^Sn  •  Read 
imNSD  Dp?2  "in^^l    (cp.   xcvi.  6,    Isa.  Ix.  7,  Ixiii.   15,  Ixiv.   10).     An 


8  THE    PSALMS. 

f 

imperfect  p  became  n,  T  became  1,  and  □  jxissed  into  n.  [D.  H. 
Miiller  ingeniously,  l':»'?1JTy:'}<  ^11^  nm^.tS-  lint  'D  'D  is  too  weak, 
and  'j"1Ii'{<  remains  suspicious.] 

9-    M  Dn:v  V2^  2b  n^3^<  i  i'?^ij-niL%^ .    'n^a  (followed  by 

.       .     TT  :  T        -  :         :  V 

I'asek)  is  hi<,'-hly  suspicious.     The  form  only  occurs  again  in  Isa.  lix.  15 

(in  partic),  where  it  is  corrupt.  The  supposed  sense  too  is  very  unsuit- 
able. Ruben  suggests  that  it  is  a  corrupt  dittogram  of  '^Tt  ^ti}2ii  in  z/. 
6/>.  Rather  it  is  a  corruption  of  D"''^N>.*J*Z^^  ;  cp.  b'^^'^f  from  bii^DW  in 
l.\xv.  S.  ^f  ^n^3hJ  is  also  unsatisfactory.  It  should  mean  'obstinate, 
contumacious'  (Isa.  xlvi.  12) ;  hence  G  (and  similarly  S)  gives  ol  davveroi 
t;i  Kapdia.  UJiyi)  1!^J  is  also  strange  ;  the  other  passages  quoted  by 
Konig  (§  329//)  are  not  fully  parallel.  Nor  is  the  meaning  clear.  Duhm 
thinks  that  a  trance-like  sleep,  a  nDllD  (cp.  ?'.  yd),  is  meant  ;  other 
critics  think  of  the  sleep  of  death  (cp.,  however,  xiii.  4  ;  Jer.  li.  39).  The 
true  reading,  however,  is  clear  from  xlviii.  6.  -II^J  should  be  1D2  •  2'Z? , 
which  follows,  has  sprung  from  1DJ ,  written  as  a  correction  of  IQJ  ;  Qjl 

from  in^^Sn .     2.'7  nOJ<  (cp.  errors  in  Ixxiii.  i,  Ixxxiii.  6,  xciv.  i;)  comes 
T  T  ••  .  -^ 

from  '7^^:2^T  ,  a  gloss  on  t'^l  in  /.  10.     Read  therefore  inQD  1DJ  'DW^. 

10.    M  Dnn*;  ':'^n-^:i?^j^-'?D  ^^^■i•3-^^'7^.    'To  find  his  hands'  is 

doubtless  possible  in  the  abstract.  But  such  an  odd  phrase  is  not  to  be 
credited  to  a  psalmist.  It  would  also  be  against  parallelism,  even  if 
V.  6  in  AI  were  correct.  Like  the  strange  phrase  in  Job  xxxvii.  ya  it  is 
corrupt,  "^cn  is  one  of  the  mutilations  of  '?^}^Jm^  (so  r.j^.  b''n~]2, 
2  Chr.  xvii.  7)  ;  OrT'T  is  a  corruption  of  ',*jn~l\  a  correction  of  b'^Tl  ■ 
Read  ")>  >i:OX-^D   1S^-:i-0J-N^':'T . 

12.  M  moi  ID"}")  Q1"}:.  G  presupposes  DID  ■'3D")  TD^IJ , 
which  Griitz  and  Herz  adopt.  Rapoport,  cited  by  Geiger,  _7/VV.  Z/.,  1*87 1, 
P-  31  ij  331  I'jnj).  A  very  poor  result!  Read  certainly  iHJ 
D^^J')   bi^'Zn")' .     Cp.  crit.  note  on  xx.  8.  "'^ 

13  f.  Omit  first  r^IM^  (Du.)— M  tNVD  (Ron,  §  401/).  Read  ]y:2 
(Geiger,  Gr.,  Nold.,  Bruston,  Now.,  We.,  Hal.,  Du.).  Cp.  xc.  11.— 16, 
M  niOp'yi^T  .     Hardly  the  right  word.     Read  npn'yl'  (Prov.  xxvi.  20). 

T    TT   :  't  T  T 

19  f.    M  -liinn  j~ibrr  j^n^}•l:'  iiiji  d~in'  n^n-'3  :  n'^D.   a 

...  :   ~  ••  •  ••  :      T  IV  TT  - -: 

strikmg  proof  of  the  helplessness  of  the  old  critical  methods.     Baethg. 

renders  v.  ii^j, 'For  the  wrath  of  man  must  praise  thee,'  and  leaves 
V.  lid  untranslated.  Kautzsch  pronounces  the  entire  verse  'altogether 
inexplicable.'  Wellhausen  (Furness)  renders,  '  The  most  wretched 
among  men  give  thee  thanks,  |  The  residue  of  the  most  wretched  keep 
festival  unto  thee';  by  ri*Dn  ('pronunciation  and  meaning  quite  un- 
certain ')  the  pious  are  meant.  For  ~i:inn  ,  following  G  eoprda-ei  aoi, 
Bottcher  and  Ewald  read  "^pHB  ,  Thrupp  ^311^,  Wellh.  and  Duhm 
"i]^  Jnn  ■     But   (i)  (opTiifTd  (Toi  may  be  corrupt  ;  (2)  if  not,  the  sense  of 


PSALM    LXXVI.  9 

such  a  phrase  in  this  context  is  far  from  clear.  Thrupp,  it  is  true,  can 
explain  the  passage  : — '  Those  of  the  wrathful  who  survive  the  judgment 
with  which  thou  shalt  destroy  them,  shall  turn  to  thee,  and  shall  come  up 
to  Jerusalem  to  the  feast  to  adore  thy  name  '  ;  cp.  Zech  xiv.  i6,  to  which, 
according  to  Thrupp,  this  passage  alludes.  On  this  the  present  writer 
long  ago  (in  ed.  i)  remarked  that  it  puts  too  much  into  the  Hebrew, 
adding  that  for  his  own  part  he  agreed  with  Gratz  and  Briill  that  the 
passage  contained  the  name  of  an  enemy  whose  submission  the  psalmist 
anticipated.  The  former  critic  proposes  to  read  QIS  for  0~Tf<{ .  and 
Jinn  n^n  for  Ijnn  nbn,  rendering,  'For  Hamath  of  Aram  will 
confess  thee,  the  remnant  of  Hamath  will  tremble.'  The  double  mention 
of  Hamath,  however,  is  improbable,  nor  can  n"nn  mean  '  to  confess  as 
overlord.'  and  Jlin ,  'to  tremble'  (xviii.  46),  is  suspicious.  A  more 
thorough  application  of  the  newer  methods  is  indispensable.  r\f211  in 
O.T.  is  repeatedly  miswritten  for  HD^D  (the  southern  Maacath  ;  see 
£nc.  Bib.,  '  Maacah  ').     We  shall  not  be  far  wrong  in  reading, — 

The  corruptions  presupposed  are  all  of  familiar  types  ;  7^  for  ''3  is  due 
to  Uuhm  (cp.  /.  22).  [G's  fvdufiiou  and  ivdvjxiov,  corresponding  to  j~lDn 
in  V.  iia  and  b,  seems  to  be  a  corruption  of  Ovfjios  and  6vfj.ov.  The 
corruption  began  in  b,  where  it  was  caused  by  the  proximity  of  ev  in 
^vKaTaXfififia.  Nestle  {ZATIV,  1896,  p.  324)  can  hardly  be  right  in 
making  iv6.  equivalent  to  Tl'l/'^rT.] 

21.  M  DDTt'?}^  T^^7Vh  ^'^i>t^  nU-  Duhm  would  omit  mn%  the 
psalm  being  Elohistic  ;  it  will  be  seen  presently,  however,  that  the  editor 
had  no  choice  but  to  retain  the  mn''  of  the  original  poem.  It  is  a  proof 
of  the  glamour  still  attaching  to  the  text  of  M  that  these  four  words  have 
hitherto  had  to  undergo  no  serious  criticism.  Obviously,  however,  they 
are  not  parallel  to  the  second  half  of  the  verse,  since  "'liT  ^'''^iil  is  only 
used  {e.g.  Ixviii.  30)  of  subject  peoples,  while  ID*?^!  T1~TJ  can  only  apply 
to  Israelites.  The  context  suggests  that  some  ethnic  name  underlies 
one  of  the  four  words,  and  the  analogy  of  other  passages  in  the  Psalms 
suggests  that  the  name  required  is  D^'?J<Pr:3li'^  (for  X^^V))-  The 
superfluous  DJTl/J^  has  probably  come  from  D'^'^N'On"!'' ,  a  gloss  from 
the  margin,  originally  meant  as  a  correction  of  J^l'irj'?  (end  of  verse). 
Read  ^\^7vh  '12^^  ^V^y  (Ixxii.  9). 

22.  M  snr:)^   "^t  I'P^V  Vn^aD~t'3  ;  'D~b'2  as  Ixxxix.  8^  (the  two 

T        -         -  .  T     .  :  T 

passages  must  be  treated  together).  J^n;;2  =  ^<~n2  ?  ?  G  rw  (f)oj3fpa>;  J 
ierribili  (twice).  Wellh.,  '  'I^D  denotes  God,'  apparently  thinking  of 
Isa.  viii.  13.  But  we  should  expect  IJi^liQ.  Duhm  would  set  'X!^ 
aside,  as  metrically  superfluous.  It  is  superfluous,  but  not  an  inter- 
polation ;  it  comes    from    D^'TNI^Hn^  (see  next  note).     Read  D''Ii^13"t'3 


10  THE    PSALMS. 

^•J  i"?  ^'P^aiv     2  in  VT2D  is  dittographic  ;  2  =  3,  V  =  '^-     Editorial 
manipulation  ? 

23.  M  Dn^JJ  mi  "li^\  'lie  mows  off  the  snorting  of  princes  {i.e. 
despots),'  Del.  ;  'he  cuts  off  the  spirit  of  tyrants  (z.^.  kills  them),'  Duhm, 
Wellh.  \'ery  strange  ;  see  Isa.  xviii.  5.  The  remedy  is  suggested  by 
/.  24,  and  by  the  ethnic  names  in  the  rest  of  the  psalm.  Read — VHi^J 
D-^iSprrn*'?  (cp.  Ixxxix.  8,  ':i  parallel  to  NIIJ. 

24.  M  y"1^<~''3'^^'7 .  For  this  colourless  phrase  read  of  course 
"1'.i!3~"'D'?'j'?  (N  and' ::2  confounded,  as  Judg.  xiv.  15). 


PSALM    LXXVIL— I. 

1  KnJKTicRs.  Another  psalm  of  doubt,  reminding  us  of  Pss.  xxxix.d),  Ixxiii., 
and  cxvi.  The  problem,  however,  is  not.  Why  do  the  wicked  N.  Arabians 
aggrandize  themselves  at  the  expense  of  pious  Jews,  but  this.  Has  Yahwe's 
promise  utterly  failed  ?  In  both  cases,  the  mere  statement  of  the  problem  appears 
to  the  speaker  (Israel),  as  he  reviews  the  circumstances  afterwards,  to  be  the  first 
step  towards  apostacy.  The  only  excuse  is  that  the  statement  of  the  problem  had 
chilled  the  heart  of  the  speaker,  and  made  life  not  worth  living  (//.  11  f.).  At 
first  he  would  not  speak  (//.  7  f. ).  But  at  last  the  dreadful  words  came  out,  '  Has 
his  truth  failed  '  (//.  13-18).  And  now  the  loyalty  of  the  sufferer  reasserts  itself. 
All  that  he  seemed  to  have  forgotten  comes  back  to  hhn  ; 
'  The  days  she  never  can  forget 
Are  earnest  that  he  loves  her  yet ' ; 
for  a  Biblical  commentary  we  may  compare  Lam.  iii.  21-23.  Revived  from  his 
depression,  he  promises  to  celebrate  Yahwe's  exploits  in  the  songs  of  the  sanctuary, 
and  in  the  closing  words  (or  has  another  stanza  dropped  out  ?)  refers  to  the  most 
typical  of  all  the  "ancient  wonders' — -the  liberation  of  Israel  from  the  very  land  of 
Jcrahmeel  where  a  part  of  the  people  is  again  in  captivity. — Note  the  characteristic 

word  njT  (/.  13)  ;  cp.  xliii.  2,  xliv.  10,  24,  Ix.  3,  12,  Ixxiv.  i,  Ixxxviii.  15,  Ixxxix. 
39.  Parallel  j^salms  are  xxxix"),  Ixxiii.,  cxvi.;  also  xlii.,  xliii.,  Ixxiv.,  Ixxxv.,  cxlii., 
cxliii.;  and  cp.  Isa.  Ixiii.  7-Ixiv.  ii[i2],  Lam.  iii.  Cp.  also  the  view  taken  in 
OP,  p.  147  ;  also  Smend,  p.  125  ;  Coblenz,  pp.  58-60. 

1  In  Jerahmeel  I  cried  unto  Yahwe,  2 

In  Jerahmeel  I  made  supplication  unto  God. 
In  Jerahmeel  I  sought  Yahwe,  3 

[Mine  eye]  gushed  forth  without  pause, 
My  soul  refused  to  be  comforted/ 
My  spirit  within  me  was  astonished  ;  4 

I  held  fast  the  guard  of  my  tongue,  5 

I  became  dumb,  and  would  not  speak  ; 

I  forgot  the  ancient  days,  6 

10  The  years  of  old  time  I  remembered  [not], 

^  I  lost  feeling  in  my  reins  and  my  heart,  7 

I  was  depressed  and  alarmed  in  ni}'  spirit  : 

'  I  will  remember  Yahwi,-,  and  will  moan  ;  I  will  complain. 


PSALM    LXXVII. — I.  II 

'  Will  Yahwe  cast  [me]  off  for  ever?  8 

Will  he  be  favourable  no  more  ? 

Has  his  lovingkindness  ceased  for  ever  ?  9 

Has  his  truth  failed  for  all  generations  ? 

Has  God  forgotten  to  pity  ?  10 

Is  his  compassion  restrained  toward  us  ?  ' 

And  I  said,  '  It  is  my  folly  ;  1 1 

20         [I  will  remember]  the  years  of  old  time  : 

I  will  celebrate  thine  exploits,  O  Yahwe!  12 

I  will  chant  thine  ancient  wonders  ; 

I  will  muse  upon  all  thy  works,  13 

Think  upon  all  thine  exploits. 

I  will  praise  thy  way  in  Cush  ;  14 

Yahwe  is  great  in  Jerahmeel. 

Thou  art  a  wonder-working  God;  15 

Thou  hast  made  known  th}-  strength  among'the  peoples. 
Thou  hast  redeemed  thy  people  from  Missur  ;  16 

30         From  the  sons  ofjerahmeel  and  Ishmael.' 

The  tenses  in   M's  text  of  it'.  2-7  jc    f.      DSN  I'  "IDJ.     as     xii.    2. 

present   considerable   difficulty.      That  __,  __L            ,              ,  .  ,          ,    , 

the  view  presented  in  Driver's   Tenses,  '  ' '     '~~ '    ^   Phrase   which   excludes 

§    52,  n.    3,  and  Parallel  Psalier,  and  reference  to  any  individual  Israelite. — 

also  in  my  own, /"a-. ('),  is  natural,  would  i?-    Cp.    Isa.    xlix.    15. — 18.     Cp.    Isa. 

be  too  much   to  affirm.     If  the  text  is  Ixiii.  15  (end). — 19.  /  said— 3.  turning- 

the  psalmist's  autograph,  there   seems  point   is  here  marked  (xxxii.  5,  xl.  8, 

no    help    but    to    adopt    it   (m  spite  of  ]^^iii_    „)_     ^j^i^Ji^  ,    <  niy  folly'   (see 

Hitz.  and  Kon.    [§   200/^ J)  ;  but   in   a  •  :- . 

text  which  contains  such  a  gross  error  as  P'o^'-  ...-^^i'-     23)     not  =  '  my   impiety  ' 

...L,,  ,»^.»  c      -,,»»i-,4,»   /            -^        ,  (xxxviii.  6,  Ixix.  6  are  corrupt). — 20  ff. 

X\wV  VU^  for  Q^^2/iy  (see  crit.  note  ,-         ,•••    ,    t       r    ^   1   •••   - 

I'  '■>    \<^           k-i  '-'  A    V  (^p.  cxlui.  5,  Jsa.  li.  9,  1x111.  7. 

on  /.  20)  we  have  the  ojition  of  suspect- 
ing corruption.    Arbitrariness  would  be  «-  o-      -^^  1      ->              i           j     i- 
,''            ^,   .          •        1    .  •            1     ,-  2,  ri.     Yahwe  s  wondrous  dealings 
shown  not  in  using,  but  in  neglecting  -.u  1  •            ^     ■     r'    \          t      u        1 
,          .     .     1      •.•  •        '^           *^  with  his  people  in   (.ush  or    Jerahmeel 
to  use,  a  keen  textual  criticism.  ■         ,•'■.'               ,    ,        .,- ,  ,          ii 
'  in  antK|uity  are  a  pledge   that  he  will 

3.     Cp.  on  Ixxxvi.  7a. — 4.  Cp.  Lam.  repeat  them  in  the  present. — 29  f.    On 

iii.  49. — 6.  Cp.  Ixxiii.  21,  cxlii.  3.  cxliii.  this  passage  and  on  the  marginal  gloss 

4  (corr.   texts). — 7   f.    (jp.  xxxix.   2  f.  (f.  21),  which  is  an  alternative  reading 

—  II.  I   lost  feeling,  ^%  xxxviii.  9. — 12.  to    'Thou   hast   with   +thine4.  arm  re- 

Cp.  xxxi.  22,  cxvi.  11.^13.  Cp.  Ixxxv.  deemed  thy  people,  the  sons  of  Jacob 

6,  and  see  introd.  (on  HIT).  and  Joseph  '  {v.  16),  see  crit.  note. 

Critical  A'Otcs.     2.  M  should  mean,  '  My  voice  is  unto   (jod,  and  I 

will  cry  ;  my  voice  is  unto  God,  and  he  will  hearken  unto  me.'     For  ''t'lp 

read  ':'j;rjn"l"'l  (so  iii.  5,  cxlii.  2),  and  after  Wrbi^  read  (i)  priiS.  (2) 

nnnhi  (cxlii.  2).     Omit  "h^  (fragment  of  D\l':'J<). 
T-  :  V 

^  Thou  hast  led  thy  people  from  Missur, 
From  the  land  of  Ishmael  and  Jerahmeel  (r'.  21). 


12  THE    PSALMS. 

3.  The  vague  phrase  TlTi  DVD.  does  not  suit  well  here,  and  we 
have  to  account  for  the  metrically  superfluous  HT'"''?  •  Probably  this 
stands  for  ':)N;:2n"l^^IlJ.  If  so,  this  original  ':'J^rjn~l''2  was  probably  a 
correction  of  QVH  (=  D~)''2)  ;  ^j"l~li  appears  to  be  a  corruption  of 
MJi^n.  n^  is  also  wrong  ;  it  comes  from  ''"'\  i.i\  mn"  as  in  the  Heb. 
text  of  Sirach  ;  note  Pasek). 

4.  Insert  'J'y  (Lam.  iii.  49),  unless  ""J^^  underlies  ''JT^{. 

5  f.   F.  4  opens  with  a  collection  of  variants  from  the  margin,  HID't^ 

for  -^DT^*,  /.  10 ;  H^QHS  for  HDnn,  /■  6 ;  nH^^L^i^  for  'n^^u;,  /•  12.— 

^I  n'?D  TTl"!  ^I3rPj~n-  Read  probably  (in  accordance  with  Ixxiii.  21, 
corn  text)  "bv  "Till  "nanriV  ^ItSmJl  probably  corresponds  to  ^"'D^^}, 
which  G  renders  by  tjvcppcivdriv  =  n^yZ^H  •  a  corruption  of  nit^nhi?  ""^'J 
(cp.  cxlii.  4,  cxliii.  4)  has  become  H'TD  ("d  and  y  often  confounded). 

7  f.  M  ■'yv  j~|i"i::DIi*  J^TFTM  '  thou  boldest  mine  eyelids  '  ?     '  Thou  hast 

T  ••••.:       T  :  -  T 

held  the  night  watches  of  mine  eyes'?     On  either  view,  an  unbiblical 

phraseology.     But  Duhm's  'IJT  Jnini^, 'accustomed  to  night-watches  ^) 

are  mine  eyes,'  is  no  better.     For  the  key  to  the  passage,  see  xxxix.  2. 

Read  ^y)vb  Jl'V^V  /^T^^i  (ist  pers.,  as  2  I).     V  and  'i;  confounded.     G 

.       :  -  :  T      •  :  -  T 

TTpoKUTf'Kd^ovTo  (jivXaKcis  01  ex^pot.  [lav  ;   here  the   last    phrase  =  ^^J3Ii^  j  a 

reading  which  grew  out  of  >:i']]i)b  ■— M  "^ZL"r^{  ^j'?^  ''r):Di'3J  •     '  He  suffers 

thrusts  and  blows  as  if  he  were  on  an  anvil  (01*3),'  Del. ;  cp.  Gen.  xli.  8, 

Dan.  ii.  3.     Not  suitable  in  this  context.     S  presupposes  ^j^I^^W;    an 

imperfect  7  became  a  3. 

9  f.  IM  >P2Ii*n .     '  I  thought  over.'     The  illustrative  passages  offered 

are  cxix.  59,  Ixxiii.  16,  but  the  latter  passage  is  probably  corrupt,  and  in 

cxix.  59  ^i^2ti*n  means  '  I  planned '  (cp.  Prov.  xvi.  9).     To  this  it  must 

be  added  that  the  reference  to  ancient  times  is  not  in  place  here  ;  it  makes 

the  subsequent  despondency  unintelligible  (cp.  w.  11-13).     Underlying 

^j~l32'n  must  be  some  word  which  explains  the  consternation  spoken  of 

in  7n'.  2  f.  (where  D\n'7J<  niDThi  is  of  course  intrusive  [see  on  //.  5  f.]). 

What,  then,  is  the  verb  which  is  most  descriptive  "of  states  of  mind  like 

the  speaker's?     It  is  FTDll^ ;  cp.  Ixxviii.  7,  'That  they  might  place  their 

confidence  in   Yahwe,  and  not  forget  the   exploits  of  God.'     3  and  2 

closely  resemble   each   other ;   transposition  of  letters  too  is  a  simple 

phenomenon.     Read  therefore  TIRDyi^,  and  in  /.  10  read  "13*^  S*?- 

II.  Vl  n7)?3'  "-H^^JJ,  '  my  music  (see  on  Ixix.  13)  in  the  night.'  But 
we  expect  'my  song,'  not  'my  music,'  and  why  'in  the  night'?  Is 
the  phrase  parallel  to  words  in  xlii.  9,  Job  xx\v.  10?  But  these  passages 
are  most  probably  corrupt.  Or  is  H/vIl  to  be  combined  (so  accents) 
with  the  whole  clause — '  night  is  the  time  when  I  remember  my  music, 
&c.  ?  How  improbable  I  Remembering  similar  necessary  corrections  in 
xvi.  7,  xvii.  3,  we  surely  need  not  hesitate  to  read  ^jnv'73.   ^nj^JJ  not  less 


PSALM    LXXVII. — I.  13 

plainly  represents  a  verb — probal^ly  M.ilBJ  (xxxviii.  9).     (".  S,  however, 
presuppose  "'JT'Dn  (so  Gr.,  Uu.,  Hcrz). 

12.  M  "Tn")  \DB^\''^  ^^''■;^^<  (taking  over  ':i;M  from  7'.  7(1).     First,  as 

..  -:-       T    •   T 
to  ti'Sn^T  (so  also  'A  T),  i.e.  '  (my  spirit)  inquired.'     G  [ea-KoXKov  J^*  R% 

but  see  Swete)  2  0.     J,  however,  read  vi^BrtJ^I,  '  I  examined  my  spirit' 

(so  Ba.  formerly,  Che/'*,  Du.).     The  latter  gives  a  sense  more  supported 

by  usage,  but   the    context    does  not  favour  it.     Wellh.,  TBH^T  ;   rather 

perhaps    T3n>}1.      nn^'ii'J^,    which    is    unsuitable,    should   perhaps    be 

T\T\t  (xxxviii.  7). 

13.  M  TOr.     Read  ""jriJiV     The  object  of  HJT  must  be  contained 

in  one  line  of  the  couplet  (cp.  Ixxxix.  39). — M  ^J*TJ<  .     Read  miT' • 

T    -: 

16.  IVI  "i;^^-  Ci  (S'-'')  p7>a.  The  parallelism  suggests  j"10Nt .  or, 
better.  Sp\u)'i^^  (Nestle.  T/icol.  S/iid.  at/s  U'ibiL.  1S82.  p.  242)  ;  "1Q  comes 
from  dittography. 

18.  M    n'?D   Vr^ni    =1}<3    ypp'DSV      □\:3n~)    ySp    is   an    unu5ual 

phrase,  nor  is  i^J>{2  wanted.     The  other  parallelisms  between  our  psalm 

and    Isa.    Ixiii.    7.    &c..    suggests  as   a   possible   and    indeed   extremely 

probable  correction.  ^"^^  VitDH"  ip3Mnn  DX  (Isa.  Ixiii.  15).    Ij";)  became 
It  i_  TT-:-i     ':-:••: 

first  □?  .  then  by  transposition  7,':2.  then  [n]7D  •    Herz  '")  ^}^^  e)*ijp  QhJ  ; 

J<H)D  =  nDD.^^     But  nSp"'  in   Prov.  xxi.  14  should  be   r\2.y  ;   so*Hitz., 
after  2.] 

19.  M  ■'jn^Tn,  'my  being  bored  through'  (Kon.  i.  341)?  2  rpcocris 
fjLov.  But  'a  appaxTTia  pov,  J  iinhccillitas  luca.  i.e.  ^lltTT  (so  Bi  ,  Che.'", 
Du.).  G  vvv  rjp^dfifv,  i.e.  Tli'^nn .  The  latter  is  more  plausible  (cp. 
Jer.  X.  19),  but  the  strangeness  of  v.  \\b  suggests  that  corruption  exists 
both  in  {a)  and  in  (^).— 20.  M  ^v'p^  ]"';::>  jll^t^.  Does  the  whole 
prayer  mean,  '  That  (viz.  my  scepticism  as  to  the  continuance  of  Yahwe's 
kindness)  is  my  affliction.  (I  will  remember)  the  years  during  which 
God  interposed  for  His  people.'  So  Driver,  with  AV.  But  we  have  no 
right  to  supply  H^TK  .  Or,  '  My  affliction  consists  in  years  which  God's 
chastening  hand  has  allotted  to  me  '  (Del.).  Or, '  My  affliction  is  this — that 
the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High  has  become  inactive.'  So  Lowth,  Hitz., 
Hupf ,  Duhm,  following  in  part  G  («AXoicoo-is)  and  altogether  'A  2  6  E'  S  T. 
liut  T\W  H.  can  hardly  have  this  meaning  ;  in  Lam.  i\-.  i  the  'changing' 
of  gold  means  its  loss  of  objective  brightness,  and  in  Mai.  iii.  6  we  read 
that  Yahwe  '  changes  not.'  We  must  look  further.  AV  shows  more 
tact  than  most  modern  scholars.  ISThJ  is  essential  here,  and  must  be 
restored.  But  if  so  ]V'7P  '\'']y^  Jllji'  is  too  lengthy.  Is  there  any 
specially  suspicious  word  in  it?  There  are  two — ^^y  and  "IV*?!?, — 'V*?!^ 
because  it  can  so  easily  be  miswritten  for  0*71^  (see  c.i^'.  vii.  18,  ix.  3), 
and  \ty  because  it  cannot  naturally  be  combined  with  Ts^l^  ■  The 
right   correction  is  now  plain  ;■  it   is  "l]D*hi   D\'2'?U*  J"li3ii^  •      1DTN  fell 


14  THE    PSALMS. 

out  before  TD*}^  ;  V'2''  and  1V'?37  represent  the  two  parts  of  D^D'^IP  ■  We 
now  obtain  a  complete  antithesis  to  /.  lo.  As  for  the  improbable  ^/lltTf, 
it  is  surely  miswrittcn  for  ^JTllhJ  ;  hi  and  FT  confounded  (cp.  2  K. 
xvii.  21). 

21  ff.     M  ^3  r]''-''bb^g  .     Read  mn^  ^\'p'?lVJ.— M   HTDTNt.     Read 

maij^  (Gr.).— M  ■^^i^D.     Another  reading*isTr'•^^'?^,  but  St'TD  here,  as 

t:--:  ~::  •  i"    vt  :  v  v 

in  /.  27,  can  be  taken  collectively.     So  also  Tj^J/B  in  /.   22.     The  vss. 

give  plurals. 

25  f.  M  '?T3n"l  linpS.  D''^t'^^<■  An  obscure  and  very  questionable 
expression.  Bii.  renders  'p2.  'hehr'  (majestic);  Duhm,  'im  heiligen 
Nahesein'  (accompanied  by  the  divine  presence?).  Strained  interpreta- 
tions. Surely  something  more  definite,  more  suggestive  of  a  historical 
background  is  indispensable.  Such  definiteness  has  been  restored  to 
the  opening  ;  must  we  not  look  for  it  also  in  the  closing  stanza  ?  Wlp 
is  frequently  miswritten  for  W'iD,  and  D\"17J<  often  conceals  some  other 
word.  Comparing  (for  'bii)  xxii.  23,  read  '1  t^DD.  ':''?nj<{.— -M  bii~':2 
D^rf?hJ3  7i"Til.  This  is  certainly  possible,  but  in  Ixxxix.  7  similar  words 
turn  out  to  be  due  to  the  editor.  D\1T'i^  has  sometimes  come  out  of 
^I<*.2n-)V     Read  here  probably— ':'Nr.DnT2  ':'nj  QMSsV 

27.  Read  '?^<-^J^^J  ;  n  in  bi^n  is  dittographic. 

T  - 

29  f.  Bickell  has  recognized  that  ?'.  16  and  7'.  21  are  variants.  It  is 
tempting  to  seek  to  restore  the  original  text  by  combining  elements  from 
both  forms.  ]^^iiD,  for  instance,  may  seem  to  be  confirmed,  rather  than 
yTIQ,  by  the  apparent  fondness  of  Asaphite  psalmists  for  the  figure  of  a 
flock  (cp.  Ixxviii.  52,  Ixxix.  13,  Ixxx.  2).  But  at  the  best  the  result  is  not 
very  satisfactory.     Can  we  easily  imagine  a  poet  closing  his  work  with 

the  couplet, — 

Thou  hast  led  thy  people  like  sheep 
By  the  hand  of  Moses  and  Aaron, — 

or  even  with  any  improved  version  of  this  ?  And  how  came  Jacob  and 
Joseph  to  be  supplanted  by  Moses  and  Aaron  ?  The  latter  question  can 
be  scientifically  answered.  It  is  certain  that  both  3pP^  and  ]TinS  have 
occasionally  grown  out  of  '^i^r.3n~)\  and  both  Hti^H)  and  S)DV  out  of 
'^'NrQIi'"'  (cp.  Cn7.  Bib.  on  Mic.  vi.  4),  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  ^TW 
may,  like  ~iyi^  (sometimes),  have  grown  out  of  m]irj.  Knowing  how 
the  editors  were  bent  on  removing  traces  of  contemporary  history  from 
the  psalms,  we  can  hardly  hesitate  to  read  (as  the  two  original  variants), — 

•  ',        '  :  -        T :   -  T 

...  I  :  -         T    .  T 


PSALM    LXXVII. — I,    2.  I5 

In  the  latter  form  we  assume  (i)  that  DTTJ  comes  from  /n'^nj  ,  and  this 
from  pha^ ,  (2)  that  ]J^"iO  has  come  from  y^^^]2 ,  and  this  from  ll^i^a , 
and  (3)  that  "T^3  has  come  from  yiSD-  It  is  possible,  however,  that 
7>.  21  is  in  its  original  form,  and  that  it  grew  up  as  a  variant  to  7^.  16  in 
its  present  corrupt  form.  It  only  remains  to  add  that  nt'D  in  v.  16 
(end),  as  elsewhere  (e.j^.  Ixxxi.  8),  is  a  corrupt  fragment  of  t'X^mv 


PSALM    LXXVII.— 2. 

J.  RIMETERS,  This  is  a  fragment  of  a  psalm  ;  it  falls  into  stanzas  of  three  lines, 
and  so  contrasts  with  Ixxvii.f'',  which  is  in  stanzas  of  six  lines.  It  is  a  description 
of  a  theophany,  and  as  W. H.  Ward,  after  Hilzig,  has  shown  {Ainer.  Joiirn.  0/ 
TheoL,  i.  136  ft'.),  is  closely  parallel  to  passages  in  Hab.  iii.  The  parallelism  be- 
comes still  clearer  when  a  keener  criticism  has  been  applied.  The  key  to  the  poem 
in  Hab.  iii.  is  supplied  by  the  same  theory  which  has  cleared  up  so  many  other 
dark  passages  in  poetry,  prophecy,  and  narrative.  The  foes  of  Israel  referred  to 
are  the  N.  Arabians  who,  in  the  restored  text,  are  repeatedly  mentioned  by  name. 
It  is  also  probable  that  Ps.  lxxvii.(-J,  though  a  mere  fragment  of  a  psalm,  also 
mentions  these  enemies.  The  idea  of  both  psalms  {i.e.  that  in  Ilab.  iii.  and  that 
preserved  in  part  in  l.wvii.'-^)  appears  to  be  that  Vahwe,  in  the  midst  of  his  wrath 
remembering  mercy  (Hab.  iii.  2/'),  will  renew  that  great  catastrophe  of  (jld  time — 
the  overwhelming  of  the  guilty  Jerahmeelites  by  a  deluge  (see  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah').  Suggestions  are  also  taken  from  the  story  of  the  overthrow  of 
Pharaoh's  host  in  the  Red  Sea,  and  the  song  ascribed  to  Moses.  The  psalmist 
realizes  the  future  as  if  it  were  the  present. 

I  The  Jerahmeelites  fear  thee,  O  Yahwe !  17 

The  JerahmeeHtes  fear  thee,  they  are  anguished  ; 
The  Maacathites  also  tremble. 

The  Misrites  and  Ishmaelites  are  alarmed  ;  18 

The  skies  give  forth  a  peal, 

Thine  arrows  dart  hither  and  hither. 

Thy  thinider  peals  over  Jerahmeel,  19 

Thy  lightnings  shine  upon  Bethel, 
The  land  trembles  and  quakes, 

10         The  Jerahmeelites  [sink]  into  the  sea,  20 

The  Ishmaelites  into  the  great  waters, 
And  their  places  are  no  more  known. 

1-4.     The    N.  Arabian  nei^jhbours  original  story  of  the  Deluge  (see  Enc. 

of  the  Jews  (who  are  also  their  tyrants  Bib.,  '  Sodom  and  Gomorrah'), 

and    oppressors)    are   terrified    at    the  6.     Thine  uTTovrst  i.e.  lightnings 

approach     of    Vahvve,     indicated     by  (xviii.    15,     Hab.   iii.    ii). — S   f.    Cp. 

thunder  and    lightning.     Cp.  Hab.  iii.  xcvii.  4. — 10  f.   Cp.  Ex.  xv.  5. 

7,    10  f.,  and    partly    Ex.    xv.    14-16.  12.     Cp.  xiv.   13/',  and  see  introd. 

There  seems  to  be  a  reference  to  the  and  crit.  note. 


l6  THK    PSALMS. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  M  D'lD  "^^^*^  (twice).  In  /.  3  M  gives  Jlll^nn, 
apparently  as  a  climax  (note  C]j^),  but  too  tautologically.  For  Q^^ , 
Hal),  iii.  10  reads  D'lil ;  G,  however,  D'Sy  {><aoi).  Gr.  adopts  DHn , 
but  O'ltD  and  D^n  are  too  unlike,  and  according  to  rule  we  have  to  look 
out  for  some  suitable  word  out  of  which  the  three  variants  D^!^ ,  D^"irT, 
and  D^Dy  "lay  have  arisen.  From  Hab.  iii.  7  it  is  plain  (see  Enc.  Bib., 
'  Cushan  ')  that  the  people  interested  in  theophany  are  (besides  the  Jews) 
the  N.  Arabians,  and,  as  Perles  has  seen,  there  is  a  confusion  in  the  M 
of  that  passage  between  ^^J"1  and  hil^.  Thus  we  have  a  double  clue 
to  the  reatling  and  interpretation  of  Ixxvii.  \']a.  We  should  probably 
read  D'':'Kpn"]-_  "^"INIV     On  I'p^nV  cp.  Kon.,  §  154. 

3.  M   J"1VJ^fJ'^  .     On  the  analogy  of  Hab.  iii.  ^b  we  expect  an  ethnic. 

Remembering  that  j"1Qn  has  sometimes  (r.,','-.  Ixxvi.  11)  been  miswritten 

for  ^I^V^3 ,  it  is  reasonable  to  restore  Q^/I^Vi^-     Thus  the  description 

T-:-  •  T-:- 

which  once  appeared  so  dead  begins  to  burst  into  life. 

4.  M    iSXlV   D'.'tD    'X2'y{.      Hab.    iii.    10  gives   lai*   D"^    D"1T    (G 

„  T  •^-  :  .  iTT  •- 

o-KopTT-i'ftuf  ilfiara  TTopeiai).  Both  in  Hab.  and  in  Ps.  Wellh.  and  Now.  adopt 
M  Hab.'s  text  in  the  main,  but  read  Tr^lT  ;  IHi.  retains  the  Poel.  Note, 
however,  that  Dn!^~lT  in  xc.  5  is  corrupt,  and  that  Pasek  after  U''D  in  Ps. 
warns  us  of  uncertainty  in  the  text.  The  fem.  plur.  j"n2^  occurs  again 
in  ?.  S.  xxiii.  4,  but  the  context  needs  much  correction.  Apparent  fem. 
nouns  often  conceal  verbal  forms  in  T.  Unless  we  seek  a  possible 
emendation  from  Judg.  v.  4,  we  should  read   (in  harmony  with  //.  1-3) 

^DV22  D'^iji'^n-Y')  ani:D.    r.:-)r  =  nnr  =  D^^jiD ;  for  D^■^,  as  a 

mutilation  of  'fn^ ,   cp.  '  Abel-maim  '  =  Abel-meholah   in    Judith    iv.    7, 

vii.  3  =  .'\bel-jerahmeel.— 6.  For  TT''^J^i^T  read  rr^^^n  (Hab.  iii.  11). 

'   V  T  -:  '   V  • 

7  f.     M  '?.D?33 .     '  Thy  thunder  sounded  /;/  t/ie  li'hirlwind''  (Ges., 

Hitz.,  01.,  Del',   Kau.,  &c.)  ;   or  'with  rolling'    (Now.,    Du.).      All  the 

ancients  (G  'A  2  9  J  S  T)  explain  "y  as  '  wheel,'  i.e.  the  wheel  (2  wheels) 

of  the  divine  chariot  (cp.  Ezek.  x.  2,   13;    Ps.  xviii.    11,  Hab.  iii.   8?). 

Hence  Ba., 'The  thunder  of  thy  wheel  sounded.'     Houb.,  Kenn.,  Gr., 

'73'?33»  'like  a  wheel  (or,  wheels).'     But  (1)  there  is  a  warning  Pasek 

close  by  ;  (2)  the  obscurity  of  the  phrase  is  much  against  it  ;  and  (3)  the  || 

line  leads  us  to  expect  a  mention  of  the  place  where  the  thunder  was 

heard,  or  whence  the  awful  sound  proceeded.     In  the  latter  case  Kimhi's 

explanation  '  heaven  '  {sp/ia-ra)  would  not  be  unplausible.     In  the  former, 

'^T?^  in  the  narrative  books  being  so  often  the  representative  of  'pSi^nT', 

we  should  read  '?Nrorn''2  •     Most  probably  this  is  right.    This,  however, 

involves  an  easy  emendation   (by  transposition  of  letters)    in  /.  8.— M 

'PIl/l  •     In.  spite  of  the  quotation  in  xcvii.  4,  we  should  probably  read 

bPi"!,  or  ':'N1il3,  or  '?hijn^:a.     The  southern  Bethel  is  meant,  unless 

indeed  7Sj"T3  in  i  S.  xxx.  27  should  be  by\r\  (against  which  would  be 

the  fact,  if  correctly  assumed,  that  Jeroboam's  '  golden  calf  was  placed 


PSALM    LXXVII.,    LXXVIII.  I7 

at  a  place  in  the  Negeb  called  Bethel.  But  certainly,  if  ']^!2  in  (len. 
X.  2,  Ezek.  xxvii.  13  (?),  xxxii.  26,  xxxviii,  2  f.,  xxxix.  i,  should  be  read 
□^3  ,  it  would  seem  probable  that  the  accompanying  S^D  should  be 
reldhn2  (or  'li^lJia ,  or  "psn^a)-  Cp.  Enc.  Bib.,  'Tubal.'— 8.  Read 
Ty^pHQ  with  G  (see  Swete)  and  xcvii.  4. 

10.  M  "^5"}"=7  0"^.  Insufficient.  Hence  W.  H.  Ward  inserts  DM'?1<, 
Bi.  and  Uu.  ^\^ll'' ■  This,  however,  is  only  a  makeshift.  On  the  analogy 
of  b^b^  (see  on  /.  7)  and  ~f")in  (Zech.  ix.  i ;  see  note  in  Cr//.  Bid.)  from 
"^hiDHT,  and  remembering  Ex.  xv.  $d,  we  may  probably  read  D'Z 
D''':'N/':3ni"'  My  -,  n")"*  fell  out  as  a  supposed  dittogram  (n  =  11)  - 
Clearness  and  symmetry  are  now  restored.  Hab.  iii.  15  is  also  probably 
cormpt  (see  OvV.  Bifi.). 

11.  M  "J>'7"'2ti^''  (Kt.),  '^b''2t  (Kr-)-  b''2\D  is  not  found  ;  >b')2^  (so 
Kt.  ;  Kr.  'Tili')  occurs  in  Jer.  xviii.  15.  On  the  analogy  of  "^^Stt'^  for 
baV^^^  in  1-^-^v.  8  read  wbi^yDp')  • 

12.  M  Tj^jni^p^V  The  traces  of  an  ordinary  traveller  are  visible  ;  not 
so  those  of  Yahwe.  But  what  poet  would  make  such  needless  statement .'' 
Read  :]TliQpm  (cp.  Nah.  iii.  17). 


PSALM    LXXVIII. 

X  RIMETERS.  A  poetical  Midrash,  or  popular  exposition  of  the  history  of  Israel, 
from  the  events  preceding  the  Exodus  to  the  building  of  the  temple.  The  object 
of  it  is  not  so  much  to  stimulate  the  people  to  grateful  praise  for  past  mercies 
(cp.  Ps.  Ixxvii.)  as  to  warn  them  against  the  ingratitude  of  their  ancestors  which 
had  necessitated  such  severe  judgments.  Specially  strong  censure  is  given  to  the 
northern  Israelites,  whose  *  high  places  '  and  images  so  greatly  displeased  \'ahvve 
that  he  allowed  his  temple  at  Shiloh  to  he  destroyed  and  the  ark  to  be  carried  into 
captivity.  It  is  true,  Yahwe  interposed  at  last,  and  put  down  his  enemies  the 
[erahmeelites  {v.  66),  but  he  would  not  again  dwell  among  the  fickle  Ephraimites. 
He  placed  his  permanent  sanctuary  in  Judah,  and  chose  David,  a  man  of  Judah, 
to  be  the  shepherd  or  ruler  of  his  people. 

The  text  is  not  without  serious  corruptions,  which  have  been  too  superficially 
treated,  and  even  not  always  observed.  Another  unfortunate  characteristic  of  the 
psalm  is  the  weakness  of  its  chronology.  Two  series  of  wonderful  works  of 
Yahwe  are  described — t!ie  first  relating  to  the  journeyings  of  Israel  in  the  wilder- 
ness, the  second  to  the  plagues  of  Egypt,  or  rather  Misrim,  the  overthrow  of 
Israel's  enemies  in  the  sea,  the  successes  of  the  Jerahmeelites  (including  the 
destruction  of  the  temple  of  Shiloh)  and  their  subsequent  humiliation,  the  choice 
of  the  tribe  of  Judah,  and  the  building  of  the  temple.  Last  of  all,  out  of  due 
chronological  order,  comes  the  selection  of  David  to  be  king.  .Saul  is  either 
passed  over,  or  mentioned  only  as  one  divinely  rejected,  while  David  is  treated 
with  high  respect  in  harmony  with  the  idealistic  tendencies  of  later  writers. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  account  of  the  plagues  of  Egypt  (Misrim)  in  rr'. 
44-51  agrees  with  that  given  liy  the  Yahwist,  and  that  there  is  no  trustworthy 
evidence  (see  on  v.  28)  that  the  poet,  in  writing  this  psalm,  was  influenced  by  the 
Priestly  Writer.  This  is  remarkable  in  a  poet  whom  on  other  grounds  we  must 
regard  as  post-exilic.  It  may  be  conjectured,  however,  that  we  no  longer  possess 
Ps.  Ixxviii.  in  its  original  fonn.  That  it  has  been  amplified  by  additions  is  plain, 
partly  from  considerations    drawn    from    the  structure  of  the  poem,  partly  from 

II.  C 


15  THE    PSALMS. 

ilie  necessities  of  exegesis ;  that  omissions  have  been  made  in  it  appears  from 
7:  17,  where  the  Israelites  are  said  to  have  '  sinned  yet  more  '  before  any  special 
sins  have  been  mentioned.  The  probability  is  that  there  was  once  in  existence  a 
very  long  poetical  Midrash  on  Israelitish  history,  selections  from  which  constitute 
the  first  half  of  our  psalm  (vf.  I-39).  After  this  selection  had  been  in  use  for 
some  time,  the  same  writer,  or  rather  compiler,  or  another  member  of  the  same 
school,  supplemented  it  by  a  fresh  selection,  introduced  by  three  opening  verses, 
which  also  serve  as  a  bridge  between  the  two  parts  of  the  psalm.  It  has  been 
rightly  observed  by  Rothstein  that  in  the  second  part  of  the  psalm  the  second  line 
of  the  couplet  is  not  always  on  quite  the  same  metrical  model  as  the  first.  We 
cannot,  however,  lay  any  stress  upon  this.  Occasional  deviations  from  the  strict 
metrical  scheme  can  be  found  in  part  I  (see  e.,:^.  I'v.  31,  33).  Long  words,  as 
Rothstein  hesitatingly  admits,  appear  to  be  susceptible  of  two  strong  tones. 
Rothsteiii's  own  view,  that  the  original  poem  was  a  shorter  work  of  pre-exilic 
origin,  is  defended  with  great  subtlety,  but  has  no  striking  argument  in  its  favour 
except  that  drawn  from  the  dependence  of  the  psalmist  upon  J  for  his  account  of 
the  plagues  of  Lgypt.  Duhm's  theory,  however,  goes  too  far  in  the  opposite 
direction.  He  thinks  that  the  psalmist's  real  object  is  to  attack  the  '  heresy '  of 
the  Samaritans,  which  already  existed  in  mice  under  Moses.  This  is  not  only  in 
itself  very  far-fetched,  but  opposed  to  the  practically  certain  fact  that  the  psalmist 
had  the  narrative  books  before  him  in  a  more  correct  form  than  that  afterwards 
current,  i.e.  he  refers  (in  part  2)  to  Cush  of  Jerahmeel  as  the  source  of  Israel's 
idolatry  (/.  1 12),  and  to  the  people  of  Missur  and  Jerahmeel  (/.  129)  as  the  worst 
enemies  of  the  early  Israelites  and  the  captors  of  the  ark — not,  as  later  writers 
would  have  said,  the  I'hilistines.  On  this  ground,  we  must  place  Ps.  Ixxviii. — 
or,  at  any  rate,  the  poem  on  which  it  is  based — in  the  Persian  and  not  in  the 
Creek  period. 

On  this  psalm  see  J.  W.  Rothstein,  '  Psalm  Ixxviii.  als  Zeuge  fiir  die  jah- 
wistische  Gestalt-der  Exodus-tradition  und  seine  Abfassungszeit,'  in  the  Zt,  f. 
wissetischaftl.  Theologie,  1900,  pp.  532  ff. 

Deposited.     Of  Asaph.  I 

I  Hearken,  O  my  folk  !  to  my  lore, 

Bend  your  ear  to  the  words  of  my  mouth  ; 

I  will  open  my  mouth  with  right  things,  2 

I  will  pour  out  true  things  with  the  lyre,  ^ 

Yahwe's  deeds  of  renown,  and  his  strength,  4^ 

And  his  wonders  which  he  has  wrought,- 

That  the  next  generation  may  know  it,  6 

[And]  the  children  to  be  born  [unto  us],'' 
And  may  put  their  confidence  in  Yahwe,  7 

10  And  not  forget  God's  exploits,  ^ 

And  not  sin  (?)  like  their  forefathers,  8 

[Like]  that  froward,  rebellious  race, — 

I  '  That  which  we  have  heard  and  known,  |  and  our  forefathers  have  related 
to  us,  I  we  will  not  keep  secret  from  our  children,  |  to  the  next  generation  we 
will  relate  them  (z'Z'.  3,  4^). 

"  His  righteous  deeds  in  Jacob,  |  and  his  judicial  acts  in  Israel,  |  which  he 
commanded  our  forefathers  |  to  make  known  to  their  children  {v.  5). 

^  That  they  may  arise  and  relate  it  to  their  children. 

■•  But  keep  his  commandments. 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  ig 

A  race  inconstant  in  heart, 

And  fickle  in  spirit  toward  God,' 

Who  kept  not  the  covenant  of  Yahwe,  lo 

And  refused  to  walk  in  his  law, 

And  forgot  [all]  his  exploits,  II 

And  the  wonders  that  he  had  showed  them. 

Before  their  fathers  he  had  done  wonders,  12 

20  In  the  land  of  Misrim — the  country  of  Zoan  ; 

He  cleft  the  sea,  and  made  them  pass  through,  13 

And  piled  up  waters  like  a  harvest-heap  ; 
He  guided  them  with  a  cloud  by  day,  14 

And  all  the  night  through  with  a  light  of  fire. 

He  cleft  the  rock  in  the  wilderness,  1 5 

And  made  the  desert  overflow  with  an  ocean  ; 
He  brought  forth  streams  from  the  crag,  16 

And  made  waters  run  down  like  rivers. 
But  they  sinned  yet  more  against  him,  17 

30  Provoking  the  most  High  in  the  desert. 

In  their  heart  they  put  God  to  the  proof,  18 

Requiring  food  for  their  craving  ; 

And  spoke  against  Yahwfe,-  '  Is  God  able  19 

To  furnish  a  table  in  the  wilderness  ?^ 

Can  he  indeed  supply  bread,  20(5 

Or  provide  flesh  for  his  people  ? ' 

Therefore         "'•'         '••         '■'         '■'  21 

Yahwe  heard  it,  and  became  furious  ; 
A  fire  was  kindled  against  Jacob, 
40  Also  anger  rose  against  Israel  ; 

Because  they  believed  not  in  Yahwe,  22 

And  trusted  not  in  his  succour. 

And  he  commanded  the  clouds  above,  23 

And  opened  the  doors  of  heaven  : 

He  rained  manna*  for  food,  24 

And  gave  them  corn  of  heaven. 

Bread  for  his  hunger  each  one  ate,  25 

He  sent  them  provision  in  abundance. 

'  The  sons  of  Ephraim.     They  were  overthrown  like  Cusham-jerahmeel  {v.  9). 
-  They  said. 

•'  lie  smote  the  rock,  so  that  waters  gushed  out,    |   and  torrents  overflowed 
(v.  20a).  ■*  Upon  them. 


20  THE    PSALMS. 

He  caused  the  east  wind  to  blow  in  the  heaven,  26 

50         And  by  his  power  he  led  on  the  south  wind  ; 

He  rained  flesh ^  hke  dust,  27 

Winged  fowl  hke  the  ocean's  sand  ;2 

They  ate,  and  were  well  filled,  29 

That  which  they  craved  he  brought  unto  them.-^ 

P^or  all  this  they  sinned  yet  more,  32 

And  believed  not  in  his  wondrous  works. 
So  he  brought  their  days  to  an  end  in  vanity,  33 

And  their  years  by  sudden  calamity  ; 

When  he  slew  them,  they  would  seek  him,  34 

60         They  would  turn,  and  become  zealous  for  God  ; 

They  remembered  that  Yah  we  was  their  help,  35 

And  the  Most  High  God  their  redeemer  ; 

They  enticed  him  with  their  mouth,  36 

But  they  Had  to  him  with  their  tongue. 

Their  heart  was  not  constant  towards  him,  37 

Nor  were  they  faithful  to  his  covenant. 

But  as  for  him,  when  his  compassion  [is  moved],  38 

He  cancels  guilt  and  destroys  not  ; 
Ofttimes  he  takes  back  his  anger, 
70         And  arouses  not  all  his  wrath  ; 

So  he  bethought  him  that  they  were  but  flesh,  39 

A  wind  that  passes,  and  comes  not  again. 


PART  II. 

How  oft  did  the}'  provoke  him  in  the  wilderness,  40 

And  cause  pain  to  him  in  the  desert  ! 

Time  after  time  they  vexed  God,  41 

And  stirred  the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

They  remembered  not  his  hand,  42 

The  day  when  he  set  them  free  from  Missur  ; 


Upon  thcni. 

He  made  il  fall  within  their  camp,  |  round  about  their  tents  {v.  2S). 
Not  yet  liad  they  turned  from  their  craving, 
Their  food  was  still  in  their  mouths, 
When  the  ani;er  of  ^'alnvc  rose  against  them, 
And  made  a  slaughter  among  their  strongest, 
And  cut  off  the  noblest  of  Israel  {v.  30,  31). 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  21 

How  he  set  forth  his  signs  in  Misrim,  43 

80         His  prodigies  in  the  country  of  Zoan  ; 

He  turned  their  streams  into  blood,  44 

And  their  rivers,  so  that  they  could  not  drink  ; 
He  sent  among  them  dog-flies  which  devoured  them,       45 
And  frogs  which  destroyed  them. 

He  gave  their  produce  to  the  caterpillar,  46 

The  fruit  of  their  toil  to  the  locust  ; 

He  wasted  their  vines  with  hail,  47 

And  their  fig-trees  with  hot  coals  ; 

He  gave  their  cattle  over  to  the  murrain,  48 

90         Their  flocks  to  burning  sickness. 

He  sent  them  against  them     "     *  49a 

He  gave  charge  to  a  destroying  angel  49^,  50 

To  lay  low  the  sons  that  they  delighted  in  ; 
He  kept  not  back  their  soul  from  death,  51 

But  gave  their  life  over  to  pestilence  : 

He  smote  every  firstborn  in  Alisrim,  52 

The  firstlings  of  strength  in  Jerahmeel, 
But  he  led  on  his  own  people  like  sheep,  53 

100       He  guided  them  like  a  flock  through  the  desert  ; 

He  led  them  safely,  so  that  they  were  fearless,  53 

But  the  sea  covered  their  enemies. 

He  brought  them  to  his  holy  territory,  54 

To  the  mountain  that  his  riglit  hand  had  acquired  ; 

He  drove  out  nations  before  them,  55 

And  allotted  their  domain  as  an  inheritance  ; 

And  caused  to  dwell  in  the  palaces  of  Ham, 

The  tribes  of  Israel  [his  people]. 

But  they  provoked  Yahwe  the  Most  High,  5^ 

no       His  precepts  they  observed  not  ; 

They  swerved  and  became  traitors  like  their  lathers,         57 
They  were  overthrown  like  Cusham-jerahmeel  ; 
They  vexed  him  with  their  high  places,  5^ 

And  made  him  jealous  with  their  images. 

When  Yahwe  heard,  he  was  enraged,  59 

And  altogether  rejected  Israel, 


22  THF,    PSALMS. 

So  that  he  cast  olTthc  habitation  of  Shiloh,  6o 

The  temple  where  he  had  dwelt  in  Ephraim, 
And  gave  up  his  strength  to  captivity,  6i 

I  JO       His  glory  to  the  power  of  the  foe. 

He  abandoned  his  people  to  the  sword,  62 

And  was  enraged  against  his  inheritance. 

Fire  devoured  their  young  men,  63 

And  their  virgins  made  no  wailing  ; 

Their  priests  fell  b}-  the  sword,  64 

And  their  widows  wept  not. 

Then  Yahwe  awaked  as  one  that  had  slept,  65 

As  a  warrior  who  rouses  himself  from  slumber; 
He  smote  Mi.ssur  [and]  Jerahmeel,  66 

130       He  put  upon  them  an  enduring  disgrace, 

But  he  rejected  the  temple  of  Joseph,  67 

He  chose  not  the  tribe  of  Ephraim. 

He  chose  the  tribe  of  Judah,  68 

The  mountain  of  Zion  which  he  loved  ; 

He  built  his  sanctuar}'  like  Hermon,  69 

Like  the  earth  which  he  has  founded  for  ever  ; 

[He  rejected  Saul  as  king,]  70 

And  chose  David  his  servant. 

He  took  him  away  from  Lshmael, 
140       From  those  of  Jerahmeel  he  brought  him,  71 

To  tend  Jacob  his  people. 
And  Israel  his  inheritance  ; 

So  he  tended  them  with  an  honest  heart  72 

And  with  guileless  hand  he  led  them. 


The  exegetical  difficulties  of  tliis  psalm  are  removed  in  our  translation. 
I'erhaps  we  may  refer  on  the  E.\odus  to  the  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Exodus'  and  '  Moses,' 
and  on  the  site  of  Shiloh  to  the  Auc.  Bib.,  '  Shiloh,'  2. 

Critical  Notes.  3,4.  M  jllTfT ;  but  what  <?;■<•  the  '  riddles'?  Mt. 
xiii.  35  gives  KiK\)v\i\).iva  {n-rro  KarajBoXiji),  i.e.  JllinDJ-  This  reading 
seems  implied  in  the  "IMDJ  S*?  of  the  first  gloss  ;  but  is  unsuitable.  It 
suggests,  however,  that  an  initial  J  has  fallen  out.  We  might  possibly 
read  JlTT^^lJ ,  comparing  Prov.  viii.  6;  but  since  for  D^l^JJ  we  should 
read,  in  Prov.,  D*niDJ  (Gr.,  Toy),  it  is  plain  that  the  psalmist  wrote 
jmnDJ  .     This  correction  involves  another,     "p^i^^ ,  though  possible,  is 


PSALM    LXXVIII,  23 

not  very  probable.     I'rov.  viii.  6,  9  suggests  the  true  reading  Q'~)Z'^^21  • 
For  Dlp"'JQ  read  -)i-)Dn  (xlix.  5). 

Glosses  in  w.  4-7.  Observe  the  Paseks  after  the  second  word  in  w. 
4,  5,  6  respectively  ;  also  the  imperfection  of  the  metre  and  the  prolixity 
of  the  style.  G  implies  irjDJ  S*? .  Rather  read  IJ'-jnO  IPTDJ  n':'  • 
and  (for  DnSD,^)  QIDD:  (S  and  Gr.  ISD:).  In  v.  5  tiie  i'aseVfoHosvs 
r\T\V  as  in  the  corrupt  passage  Ixxxi.  6.  Surely  neither  jmp  nor 
nmjl  can  be  right.  We  expect  phrases  suitable  in  a  gloss  on  v.  4/'. 
Read  certainly ':5i^-)::rU  TLOStt'DT  3pPU  Vmpi^iT .  Dislocation  and 
corruption.     Cp.  ciii.  6.     TlliJ^  ;  see  on  Ixi.  8. 

7  fif.  Read  ^^TT  (metre)  and  □''^21  (T  absorbed).  Insert  ^i^ 
(metre).     Read  TWTV'l  (Bi.). 

11  f.  VrT* ,  though  weak,  may  be  right,  but  Pasek  suggests  a  doubt. 
Comp.  cvi.  6,  and  read  IJ^^H^  ("').    Read  "1113. 

Verse  9  inserted.  As  it  stands  it  is  a  riddle.  What  is  the  '  day  of 
battle'?  Where  is  the  parallelism?  Why  are  the 'sons  of  Ephraim  ' 
singled  out  ?  The  text  cannot  be  right.  It  is  an  editor's  attempt  to 
make  sense  out  of  a  corrupt  form  of  v.  i']b  (see  note),  inserted  in  the  mg., 
with  the  prefix  DHSl^  ^J3  as  a  note  on  Dm^iO  in  v.  8.  The  passage 
should  run  '^J^Dm"'  3^P3  IDBHJJ  '^J  "1.  Of  the  last  two  words 
rW^T'^iyr^.  ""piinj  is  a  corruption  ;  'J  comes  from  \Jj^3  (=  D^i'O),  '1 
from  V^Dni' .  rWy>  from  QliO  •  2")p  DV3  also  represents  '-)"'  '33  . 
Cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on  Zech.  xiv.  3/^     Duhm's  correction  is  too  superficial. 

15,  17.     Read  TWTV  ;  insert  '73  (metre),  mistaken  for  a  dittogram. 

20.  Point  Dn^iD  •  So  -IVjJD ,  /•  78  ;  an^'^D  ,  //.  79.  97  ;  cp.  on 
/.  129.— For  ]jr\j;  we'might  read ~y^^.     But  yg-^  may  =  b'^'^'d^'^  (J-  139  f-)- 

26.     M  -3    px'n .      Read    pp'i:?^  (Ixv.  10).      M    n3"l  :    read    r73"ir 

'  ''••:-  T  -  T  T-: 

(Gr.,    Du.).     The  former  correction   removes    Bii.'s    objection   that    the 

water  was  not  to  quench  the  thirst  of  the  desert. 

30,   33.     M  ni")Q7 ,  a  possible  form;   cp.   Isa.   iii.  8   (Konig,  ii.   i, 

§  112,  i).      Olsh.  suggests  /I'n;^'^.     But  mO  is  not  the  most  natural 

verb.     Read  "11^7.      (^  mipfTrLKiMvav  (so  S). — Read  r\')r\''  (also  in  /.  41), 

and  omit  ^~1Q^^ . 
:   T 

Verse  20a  inserted.     An  unnietrical  and  unchronological  amplification. 

The  striking  of  the  rock  came  afterwards. 

2;].  Pasek  favours  the  view  that  words  have  dropped  out  (cp. 
Num.  xi.  1). 

47.  M  Dn^3J<  UXt)  •  Too  singular  a  phrase  for  this  psalmist  to 
have  coined.     The  '  true  Jewish   realism  '  of  the  view  that  the  angels 


24  THE    PSALMS. 

lived  on  manna  is  also  very  suspicious  in  a  psalm.     The  parallel  line 
suggests  i^'l3in   Unb;  cp.  (ion.  xlii.  19. 

49.     M  yO'' .     Rather  perhaps  ^^£^"1 ;  y  and  2  confounded. 

Verses  30,  31  inserted.  The  mention  of  a  judgment  (cp.  Num.  xi.  33) 
is  out  of  place.  For  TIT  read  T\0 ,  and  for  Q^il'^N  read  rnH'  •  For 
T'^'2T\  read  j-inDn(Gr.f;  ||  Jin^'. 

61 .     M  D~1J)^  .     G  ^nrjdoi  avTciv,  i.e.  here  at  least  D^TJ?  •     (In  xciv.  22 
T  t:v 

"l^li  is  much  more  suitable  than  it  would  be  here  ;  ^orjdos  of  course  is 

vague.)     "ITi?    and    "nji  are  both   titles   of  God  ;    for   "1TP   see  cxv.  9, 

cxlvi.  5,  cxviii.  7   (corr.  text),  also  Dt.  xxxiii.  29.     See  on  xxxiii.  20,  and 

cp.  Geiger,y«V.  Z/.,  '72,  p.  88. 

67.  M  Dinn  hiim.  Not  enough  for  a  line  ;  observe  Pasek.  Read 
V.^rn  TI^DD^  >^im  ;  Hos.  xi.  S  (reading  rpn*}).  Of  two  similar  groups 
of  letters  one  fell  out. 

73.  U  imir.22-  l-^ead  ^rmnD^  (Gen.  xhx.  23);  note  parallelism. 
Cp.  on  //.  30,  115,  and  cvi.  33. 

75  f-  ^D^.l-  ^^^^  suitable  than  ^D''J?p^  (so  /.  115).— M  ?nrin , 
'  caused  to  repent '  (.Aram.  J^Hip)  ?  The  true  reading  must  be  ^JT'DH 
(I  K.  xxi.  25)  ;  cp.  G  S.— 78.  M  'l':^'^^!^  ■  Read  1^72  (xliv.  11).— 79. 
Point  D"'~1^*I2. 

87  f.     M  Jin^ .     It  is  rash  to  retain  this  word.     Nowhere  is  JIH  used 

with  reference  to  plants  ;  inierfice  messes  (V'irg.,  Georg.,  iv.  330)  is  not 

Hebraic.     Houb.  noticed  the  corruption,  but  could  not  heal   it.     Read 

2in^-— ^1  T'Djn ,  'an  unknown   word'  (Duhm).      Mich.,  Ges.  {T/ies. 

•'-:-  1-T-:  ,  . 

A99<^)i  and     Kon.    (ii.    402)    suspect   a   connection    with    7;^^  =  H^l^J , 

T  T  : 
'  mouse.      But   there    is    no  sure    instance   of  n   as    a  formative  prefix. 

Tg.'s   ^J31T~I^  suggests  D"'3^n.     The   right    word,   however,    is    uhn^ 

(Exp.  T.,  July,  1899). 

89  f.  M  Ti;i7.  The  strong  expression  l^D^T  (cp.  /.  102)  favours 
"13"^2  '  pestilence  is  no  common  mishap,  but  an  unaccountable  malign 
agent.  Read  "^y^b  (^  ''^"^^  some  MSS.)  ;  so  Ew.,  Dy.,  Bi.<2),  Or.,  Du.— 
M  D^H)Ii7"l7,  rendered  'to  the  flames,'  i.e.  lightnings.  But  S)Iir"l  by  itself 
does  not  mean  '  lightning '  (see  on  Ixxvi.  4)  ;  bl^  ^3li;~1  would  be  required 
(see  Buddc  on  Ct.  viii.  6).  If  "llZl'^  were  right,  the  parallel  should  be 
D^3ik"l7  'to  glowing  stones'  (i  K.  xix.  6;  Is.  vi.  6).  I^l"?  requires 
^'itl':'  ;  (p.  Mab.  iii.  5.  Thus  we  gain  a  reference  to  Ex.  ix.  3  (131). 
Cp.'^Hail,'  E/ic-.  Bib. 

91  fT.  Note  Pasek  after  QB.  The  following  words  in  M  seem  to  be 
an  editorial  substitute  for  the  true  reading.-M  niilV     Sense  and  metre 


PSALM    LXXVIII.  25 

require  a  verb  ;  read  "lii"*!  (Gr,).— M  Q'^);i  ''D^<'pD  STpWD  ;  cp.  Kiin. 
Syn/.  §  2676,  244^.  A  combination  of  improbabilities.  Read  TJi^'^T^t' 
JTTfli^iD .  D"'P"1  represents  7^iQ/'0^"^^  (cp.  on  i  S.  ii.  23).  a  marginal  gloss 
on  oh  (t'.  55/-'). 

T 

98.  M  D''jil<-  G  rwv  TT<'>vo)u  avTwv.  Read  DJihi  (Cr.).— For  Qn  "'S"1»SZ1 
read  '?^<D^S'n• 

106.  The  Pasek  in  7'.  55  is  placed  a  little  too  early.     t'QH^  D'?'3''T 

n^nj    is   untranslatable.      J)ulim    reads    QJltTlJ,    transferring   D  from 

Da3"'T,  but  r0112  in  such  a  context  must  refer  to  the  Israelites.     Read 

n'pnjB  nbli  bB^'\  ;  cp.  Num.  xxxiv.  2. 
T-:-:        T\  : 

107  f.  For  Q^^';?^^<2  read  QH  '•'^D^nH  (DH  •  a  popular  form  of 
7K!2nn^),  and  insert  ID^  (metre),  which  may  indeed  underlie  the  super- 
fluous inrj^T  in  7'.  56.  Perhaps  IQy  was  inserted  by  a  corrector, 
and  afterwards  misplaced  and  corrupted  into  TII^^V 

109.    On   lirj^l   see   above     M's    ^DT'\   is    a   corruption    of  ^DT?^] 

(/.  81). 

112.  M  n^'^l  j"l^p3,  'like  a  bow  which   does   not  respond  to  the 
T  •    :         V  'v: 
archer's  aim'.''     The  same  phrase  occurs  in  Hos.  vii.  16,  where  the  text 

is  suspicious.     In  Ps.  cxx.  2  f.  nVJSI  ]wb  is  certainly  a  combination  of 

bi^Vi^W*    with  .1:     The  doubtful  word  n''u5"1  now  becomes  clear  ;  it  can 

only  be  '7^<^3^")V      Cp.    the   proper   name    n''/":2"),   Ezr.    x.    25,    which, 

close    to  nOt'i^,  must  needs  be  another  of  the  current    distortions  of 

bsomv     Cp.  on  7'.  9. 

118.  M  DlhJii  ]3]i)  bn'H.     The  versions  only  differ  as  to  the  verb. 

T  T  T         ..    .  V  ^  /-  •  1 

M  2  betray  a  religious  scruple  (cp.  Geiger,  Ursdu-ift,  321}  ;  G  e  imply 
'\y32-  This  is  plausible,  but  produces  a  mere  gloss  on  l7lt'  ]DIi'<'2.  'ind  a 
very  poor  one,  for  it  repeats  Vpli^,  and  g-i\es  the  vague  DIN  for  't>'V 
(perhaps  iV^  was  intended).  The  psalmist  is  so  careful  about 
parallelism  that  we  are  bound  to  suppose  a  great  accident  to  the  text — 
not  greater,  however,  than  has  occurred  often  elsewhere.  Read  '7D^~T 
□^3}^  lyifj  ;  transposition  and  confusion  of  letters  ;  D  in  '?D\~I  lost. 
Loeb's  Y'^^<3  for  D1S2  is  impossible  ;  independently,  I  had  at  first 
thought  of  ^/2^^J21 .  <  '-r.  has  already  suggested  D^"^^^*2.  but  1  evidently 
represents  3,  and  wc  need  a  parallel  to  i'^Ii?. 

124,  126.  M  I'^'pin.  'a  vfjLvr]0i](T(iu,'2Q  E  (n;jvfdr}(Tau,  as  if^'^^H,  with 
reference  to  the  marriage-songs.  Cp.  Talm.  NT'lyil  '  a  wedding.'  So 
Wellh.  'undoubtedly.'  More  naturally  (cp.  Cir.)  G  has  eTrtudqarav  ;  J 
(/ief;!(>)  luxii;  i.e.  '^^'h^T^.—^  Tyy'^'irS-,  rightly;  so  ST.  But  G  J  S 
ni03j"n.  So  Duhm,  who  asks  why" the  widows  and  the  \irgins  should 
not  have  wept.     Because  under  the  oppressive  sense  of  Vahwi-'s  anger 


26  THE    PSALMS, 

all     religious     ceremonies    would    be    suspended    (Jer.    xvi.     4-9,    Job 


NXVU. 


128.  IM  ]'''''J  pi"1712.  ('•  KfKpanrnXtjKws  f^  oiVov  ;  J  posf  craplilavt 
villi.  Tg  npDn^l,  suggesting  "lli^/li'^S  (Or.)-  But  the  corruption  is 
not  fully  accounted  for.  To  heal  it,  we  must  dig  deeper.  Read  certainly 
n*.3^3n!t3  nij72,  improving  the  parallelism  and  getting  rid  of  the  unseemly 
figure  of  intoxication,  "liyj  of  Vahwe,  as  Zech.  ii.  17.  Perles  ingeniously 
but  vainly  defends  IM  {Anal.  79). 

129.  M  nin}«?  V")^  TfT.     This  involves  a  slightly  veiled  coarseness. 

T  TT       '-- 

which,  experience  warns  us,  is  due  to  corruption  of  the  text.  Even  Ba., 
who  considers  linhJ  (G  ets  ra  oTrtVco)  to  refer  to  the  D'''!?E)y  of  i  S.  v.. 
supposes  inconsistently  that  the  victories  of  Saul  and  David  must  (some- 
how-;  be  intended.     Read  '?Nr2m''T  "lliirj  '7\^^. 

IjS-  M  □'*^~1"1,*03;  G  ojsynoj/oKfpwrwi/ (so  J).  Street  DV.21"1('2^  (Job  xvi. 
19,  XXV.  2,  cp.  x.xxi.2);  Hitz.,  D\w1T:JD  ;  Bick.  DTlQ^  ■  None  of  these 
readings  are  satisfactory.  In  xxxvi.  ^a  the  divine  righteousness  is 
probably  compared  to  Mt.  Jerahmcel  (|[  '  the  great  deep').  Probably 
here  too  either  T'K/'^rn^,  or  some  popular  distortion  of  that  name,  such 
^s  ]VJ"^rT ,  should  be  read. 

139  f-  nj^'l'D.^Dr.D  and  n'bv  -inSV^  both  represent  Q^t'i^.'^ni^D.  IN*:*, 
like  ^^^,  probably  comes  from  t'WDIi/'' ;  so  too  perhaps  even  in  i  .S. 
x\M.  1 1,  19.  \vii.  34,  and  Gen.  xxxvii.  2.     Cp.  on  IJ,*^,  /.  20. 

144.  M  j~nj13nnT  cannot  go  with  V33.  From  Gen.  xx.  5  we  see 
that  ]VpJin  must  have  been  the  original  reading,  p  and  JH ,  J  and  3 
have  been  confounded  ;  transposition  of  the  letters  accounts  fornearly  all 
the  rest.  The  final  J^  %vas  added  under  the  impression  that  the  corrupt 
form  before  the  scribe  (which  must  have  ended  with  T)  was  a  fem.  plural 
form,  and  that  the  mark  of  abbreviation  had  fallen  out.  Montfaucon 
represented  2  as  giving  khtIi  ti)i>  Ka6ai}ivTi]Ta  tUv  x-  c^tov,  but  Field 
questions  the  accuracy  of  this. 


PSALM   LXXIX. 

1  kimi:teks,  hut  tlic  appendices  are  in  telranieters.  It  is  a  psahn  of  complaint 
on  llic  clefilcnicnt  (jf  the  tenii>le,  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  slaughter  of 
many  of  ihe  pious  around  the  capital,  after  which  comes  a  prayer  for  vengeance. 
We  are  somewhat  reminded  t)f  I's.  l.wiv.  (cp.  v.  5  with  Ixxiv.  i,  10),  but  auile  as 
much  of  I's.  xlii.-xliii.  (cp.  ?■.  lO  with  xlii.  4,  ivic),  and  one  interpolator  has 
introduced  (as  v.  4)  a  passnge  from  I's.  xliv.  (z:  13  ;  cji.  lxx\.  7),  while  another 
(I'c'.  6  f.)  has  copied  Jer.  x.  25.  All  tliese  passages  relate  to  the  same  period, 
though  not  to  the  same  part  of  the  period,  viz.  that  of  the  N.  Arabian  oppression 
of  Judah.  Certainly  I'ss.  Ixxiv.C  and  Ixxix.  are  not  in  all  points  parallel.  In  the 
former  tlie  temple  is  destroyed  ;  in  the  latter,  it  is  only  'defded.'  In  I's.  Ixxiv., 
moreover,    nothing   is   said   of  the   bloodshed    round  ahout   Jerusalem.     In  the 


PSALM    LXXIX.  27 

original  form  of  Ps.  Ixxix.  the  word  used  for  tlie  enemies  of  Judah  may  liave  been, 
not  D^lJ[n],  but  D^'7^i^^m^ ,  or  the  like.  The  later  editors  of  the  psalms 
sought  to  efface  historical  colouring  which  no  longer  conduced  to  edification. 
In  /.  7  it  may  be  possible  to  restore  the  ethnic  name.  For  a  probable  view  of  the 
real  or  supposed  historical  occasion  of  the  psalm,  see  on  Ps.  Ixxx. 


Marked:  of  Asaph.  i 

I        O  Yahwe  !  the  heathen  have  entered  thine  inheritance, 
They  have  defiled  thy  holy  temple, 
They  have  made  Jerusalem  heaps  -f-of  stones+. 

They  have  given  the  dead  bodies  of  thy  servants  2 

As  food  to  the  birds  of  the  heaven, 

The  flesh  of  thy  loyal  ones  to  the  wild  beasts  ; 

[The  Edomites]  have  shed  their  blood  3 

Like  water  round  about  Jerusalem, 

And  there  is  none  to  bur}-  [their  corpses].^ 

10     How  long,  O  Yahwe  !  [wilt  thou  hide  thyself]?  5 

Wilt  thou  be  angry  at  thy  loyal  ones  ? 
Will  th}^  jealousy  burn  like  fire?'- 

Remember  not  the  guilty  acts  of  our  princes  I  8 

Let  thy  compassions  qbickly  come  to  meet  us, 

For  we  have  come  down  very  low  [we  have  come  down]. 

Help  us,  O  God  who  art  our  succour,  9 

Because  of  the  honour  of  thy  name. 
And  cancel  thou  our  sins  ! 

Rescue  us  because  of  thy  name  ; 
20     Why  should  the  heathen  say,  10 

Where  is  [Yahwe]  their  God  ? 

Mayest  thou  avenge  on  the  heathen  in  our  sight 

The  blood  of  thy  servants  that  is  shed  ! 
***** 


*  We  are  become  a  +mark  for+  insult  to  our  neighbours. 
For  derision  and  mockery  to  those  round  about  us  (i'.  4). 

■^  Pour  out  thy  wrath  upon  the  nations  that  know  thee  not,  |  and  on  the 
kingdoms  that  call  not  on  thy  name  :  |  for  they  have  devoured  Jacob,  |  and  made 
his  dwelling  desolate  (z'v.  6,  7). 


20  THE    PSALMS. 

Appendix  i. 

Let  tlie  sighing  of  the  prisoner  come  before  thee,  ii 

Thy  might  being  great,  loose  those  that  dwell  in  gloom  ; 
And  pay  our  neighbours  back  sevenfold  into  their  lap  12 

The  insults  which  they  have  put  upon  thee,  O  Yahwe  ! 

Appendix  11. 

And  we,  thy  people,  the  flock  that  thou  tendest,  13 

Will  give  thee  thanks  [O  Yahwe]  for  ever, 

Will  tell  out  to  all  generations  thy  deeds  of  renown. 

"  1-3.    The  writer  of  I  Mace.  vii.  16  f.  93,    104).     The   application    was   ren- 

found    in    ',-.•.    2   f.    (how   read  ?)    an  dered     possible    by    the     effacing     of 

anticipation   of  the   massacre   of  sixty  the    references    to    jerahmeelites    and 

leading   Asidxans    (D^^^DH)    by    Al-  Edomites   (see  introd.).      Elegies  like 

cinuis    (see    Enc.    Bib.,    'Alcimus').  this  always  can  be  applied  to  parallel 

The     (juotation     is    introduced    by    b  circumstances.      Cp.    the    lamentation 

•ypa^a^  ;  the  Syriac    inserts  '  the   pro-  of  the  priests  of  Uruk  (Erech)  over  the 

phet,'  perhaps  assuming,  like  Theodore  desolation   of  their    city    and    temple 

of  Mopsuestia,  that  the  psalm  refers  to  about  2285  u.C.  (Maspero,  Strui^gle  of 

Maccabaan  times,  but  that  the  psalmist  if>£   A'ations,    37;    Pinches,  Bab.  and 

spoke  projihetically  in  the  character  of  Or.  Record,  Dec,  18S6,  pp.  22  f.). 
he  Tews  of  the  early  Maccabaan  age.    It 

hasbeen  asked  whether  or  no  (following  4-6.    Cp.   Dt.   xxviii.   26,  Jer.    vii. 

the  Greek  text)  the  writer  of  2  iMacc.  33.  >^vi.  4,  xxxiv.  20. 

quotes  the  passage  as  a  Scripture.     Of  ,„  ,^     <-      1     ■  1 

course,    he    found    Ps.    Ixxix.    in    the  ,   /°"'%  ?"  •■''^^^; '' JP '  r      J'l:- 

Psalter,  but   what  has  this  to  do  with  ^  '::"'^'-  5'  '-^^'^>-^-  47-- 16.    Cp.  Leh. 

its  date?     It  is  also  true  that  the  same  '^'  ^'^' 

historian  indirectly  applies  vv.  1  and  3  20   f.      Cp.    xlii.    4,    &c.,   cxv.    2, 

to  the  earlier  cruelties  of  the    Syrian  Joel  ii.  17. — Appendix   i.     Cp.  cii.  21. 

Greeks  in  the  time  of  Mattathias  \0P,  —Appendix  2.     Cp.  Ixxiv.  i  (flock). 

Critical  Notes.  Verse  4  comes  from  xliv.  13  ;  verses  6,  7,  from  Jer. 
X.  25  (see  introd.). 

7.  Metre  requires  an  insertion,  such  as  DV^*TN  ,  which  may  easily 
ha\  c  fallen  out  before  or  after  DQT  .—9.  Similarly  here  we  may  insert 
DrT'"lJ3.     If  written  'n;i3  ,  this  may  have  dropped  out  after  "12p. 

10.  Insert  IjlDP  (Ixxxix.  47).— 13,  15.  In  /.  13  omit  ^j"?  (so  Du.), 
and  in  /.  15  insert  a  second  ?) j'?'[T .  yi^  seems  to  be  a  misplaced 
fragment  of  IJ^l.  D"•Jtt'^J"^  is  inappropriate  here  ;  Israel  had  sins  of  its 
own  to  get  forgiven  (?•.  9).     Read  f^yyti  (or  li^^n). 

19-  IJv^ljm  is  misplaced  in  M  ;  metre  i^ains  by  transposition 
(so  Du.). 

21.  Insert  mn%  which  fell  out  after  rVtH.,  but  was  (perhaps)  restored 
from  marg,  after   '?M,  but  became  corrupted  into  the  very  improbable 


PSALM    LXXX.  29 

22.  Duhm  reads  Ujyi  (for  M's  /IDpj)  on  account  of  the  masc.  verb 
i?7V  .  But  there  is  a  better  solution  of  the  problems.  yiV  comes  from 
mn^,  which  belongs  to  /.  21  (see  note),  and  jlt2p2  is  probably  a  cor- 
ruption of  Dpr)  ;  Dp2  with  2,  as  Judy.  xv.  7,  &c. 

App.  I,  /.  2.  For  IJ-nn  read  ir^Q  (cxlvi.  7(^).  with  S  T,  Bii.,  Kau., 
We.,  Herz,  and  for  rrmon  >J2  "read  mD'?]i  'JDlt'.  nnnn  is 
suspicious.     See  cvii.  10,  and  cp.  on  cii.  21. 


PSALM    LXXX. 

i  RIMKTERS.  A  beautiful  specimen  of  parallelism.  The  psalmist  appeals  for 
divine  help  against  the  N.  Arabian  oppressors  (//.  4,  27  f.,  35  f.),  who  have  as  it 
were  rent  asunder  and  burned  the  flourishing  vine,  or  (/.  32)  oak,  of  Israel. 
Ps.  Ixxx.  is  parallel  to  Pss.  xlii.,  xliv.(-),  Ixxxix.*'-',  and  to  Isa.  Ixiii.  7 — Ixiv.  ii  (see 
on  vv.  6,  7,  13,  15).  The  arguments  as  to  date,  drawn  from  certain  readings  of 
M,  naturally  fall  to  the  ground  if  these  are  incorrect.  The  psalm  was  neither 
written  during  Pharaoh-necoh's  occupation  of  Judah  (Gratz),  nor  in  the  early 
Maccabaan  period  by  a  Jewish-minded  Samaritan  (Hitz.,  Gesch.,  387).  Nor  is  it 
a  tenable  view  that  vv.  2-4  are  derived  from  a  pre-exilic  psalm  used  by  northern 
Israelites  in  the  temple  of  Bethel  (Peters, y^^Z,  1893,  P-  59)-  It  is  also  needless, 
on  our  view  of  the  text,  to  put  vv.  13  f.  after  vv.  15  f.  (so  Bickell),  or  v.  17  after 
V.  14  (so  Schroder  and  Hupfeld).  It  is  possible  that  there  were  changes  in  the 
attitude  of  the  leading  N.  Arabian  power  towards  the  Jews — that  the  king  mis- 
called Evil-merodach  really  permitted  a  number  of  captives  to  return,  and,  in 
conjunction  with  those  Jews  who  had  never  been  carried  into  exile,  to  rebuild  the 
temple,  and  constitute  something  like  a  Jewish  state,  and  further  that  fresh 
]5olitical  difficulties  supervened,  followed  by  fresh  calamities,  which  are  described 
in  Pss.  xliv.f-*,  Ixxiv.,  Ixxix.,  Ixxx.,  Ixxxiii.  If  we  could  make  this  reasonably 
certain,  it  would  be  the  easiest  explanation  of  the  language  of  these  psalms.  But  it 
is  barely  possible  that  the  psalmist  throws  himself  back  by  imagination  into  the 
time  when,  as  we  know  for  certain,  Jerusalem  was  destroyed,  and  its  inhabitants 
slain  or  carried  captive,  so  that  all  that  is  real  {i.e.  not  imagined)  in  the  psalms 
would  be  the  strong  passion  of  resentment  against  the  N.  Araljians,  which  was  still 
kept  alive  by  continued  acts  of  N.  Arabian  oppression  (cp.  on  Pss.  xHi.-xliii.). 

Deposited.     Of  the  Ishviaelites.     Of^Arab-ethan.     Of  Asaph,      i 

I  O  Shepherd  of  Israel  !  cause  -fthy  face-n  to  shine,  2 

Let  thy  splendour  shine  forth  from  Zion, 
O  Cherubim-enthroned  One  !  do  thou  punish 
The  sons  of  Jerahmeel  and  Missur.  3 

Stir  up  thy  heroic  might, 
And  come  to  succour  us  ! 

O  Yahwb  [Sebaoth],  refresh  us!  4 

Cause  thy  face  to  shine,  and  we  shall  be  succoured ! 

O  Yahwe  Sebaoth  !  how  long  5 

10         Wilt  thou  reject  the  prayer  of  thy  servants  ? 


30  THE    PSALMS. 

Thou  feedest  us  with  wormwood  for  bread,  6 

And  givest  us  tears  of  gall  to  drink  : 

Thou  makest  us  a  scoff  for  our  neighbours,  7 

Our  enemies  jeer  at  us, 

O  Yahwe  Sebaoth,  refresh  us  !  8 

Cause  thy  face  to  shine,  and  we  sliall  be  succoured  ! 

A  vine  didst  thou  transplant  from  Misrim,  9 

Thou  didst  expel  the  nations  and  set  it  : 

Thou  didst  clear  the  ground  before  it,  lO 

20     It  took  root,  and  filled  the  land  : 

The  mountains  were  covered  with  its  shadow,  1 1 

The  cedars  of  God  with  its  branches  ; 

It  sent  forth  its  tendrils  to  the  sea,  12 

And  its  shoots  to  the  river. 

Why  hast  thou  broken  down  its  fences,  13 

So  that  all  that  go  by  lay  it  bare  ? 

Jerahmeel  tramples  it  down,  14 

Cush  and  Asshur  break  it. 

Look  +down+  from  heaven,  and  behold,  15 

^o     And  take  notice  of  the  vine  of  thy  possession. 

And  the  garden  which  thy  right  hand  planted,  16 

And  the  oak  which  thou  madest  strong  for  thyself. 

They  have  burned  it  with  fire,  they  have  torn  it  ;  17 

At  a  threat  from  thy  mouth  let  them  perish  ! 
Let  thy  hand  be  against  Asshur  and  Jerahmeel,  18 

Against  the  sons  of  Edom  and  Missur  ! 

[Refresh  us,]  and  we  will  not  swerve  from  thee  ;  19 

Revive  us,  and  we  will  call  upon  thy  name  ! 
O  Yahwe  Sebaoth,  refresh  us  !  20 

40     Cause  th\'  face  to  shine,  and  we  shall  be  succoured  ! 

I.     O      Shepherd      of     Israel.  15   (Isa.  xxxvii.  16);    cp.   Enc.  Bib., 

See  xxiii.  I,  Ixxviii.  52,  Gen.  xlviii.  15,  'Cherub,'  §  4.  — 11-14.   See  crit.  notes. 

and   cp.  Ass.  n"'//,   'shepherd,  'ruler'  ^^  ^^    ^  f^^^  allegorical  picture  of 

(properly  a  participle).     HJ^I  in  Gen.  Israel  as  a  vine  ;  cp.  Isa.  iii.  14,  v.  1-7, 

,.  .  ,    ,,  ,v       i  T>i„oe        Ter.  ii.  21,  Hos.  X.  i.  Amonsrthe  pecu- 

xhx.  24  IS  probably  corrupt  (see  '  Ble  s-  -  ^^^      =,^1^^.  J  ^^^^ 

ings  on  Asher,  Naphtha),  and  Joseph,  ^^^^^^^  ^^  .^^  ^^^^^.^^  ^^^^  ^H^^.^^  ^^^^^_ 

PSBA,   June,    1899).— 2.    V^SIH    of  plantation.       The    history    of     Israel. 

Yahwe's  appearance  in  glor)'rxii- 6  (?),  according    to    him,   begins    in    Egypt 

1.  2,  xciv.  1,  Dt.  xxxiii.  2.  — 3.    Chein-  (or    rather     □"n^JQ  ,    '  Misrim,'    cp. 

I'iiii-ent/ironed  one,   i.e.  seated   on    the  Hos.  xi.  i).      Cp! '.£"«<■.  i5/^.,  '  Vine.' 
(heavenly)  throne  which  is  guarded  by 

the  cherubim.     So  xcix.   I,  2  K.  xix.  21-24.  Do  the  '  mountains' represent 


PSALM    LXXX.  31 

the  southern,  the  *  cedars  of  God'  (cp.  TreSi'o),  is  doubtful ;  the  words  may  have 

the   'cedars  in  the  garden  of  Elohini,'  arisen  out  of  a  corrupt  various  rendcr- 

Ezek.  xxxi.  8,  and  see  on  I's.  xxxvi.  7)  ing  of  the  preceding  figure  (see  Klost. 

the  northern  frontier?    If  so,  the  'sea'  ad  he).     And  the   text    of  Ixviii.   31 

is  the    ^fediterranean,    and    the    river  being   corrupt    (see   note),   wc    cannot 

the    Euphrates,    i.e.   the    W.   and    E.  refer  to  it  in  justification  of  the  roatling 

boundaries. — 25  f.  Cp.  Ixxxix.  4I«,  42^.  'the  wild  boar  from  the  Nile.'     Pro- 

27   f.    See  crit.  note.     There  is  no  bably,    therefore,    it   is   correct  to  say 

valid  reason  why  an  oppressor  of  the  that  the  wild  boar  is  nowhere  referred 

Jews  should  not  have  been  likened  to  to  in  the  canonical  O.T.  (cp.,  however, 

a  wild  boar  (cp.  Adonis  and  the  wild  Nestle,  Alari^inalien,  iS). 
boar).      In   4    Esd.   xv.    30   tlie    Car- 

monians  are  compared  to  '  wild  boars  29.  Cp.  Isa.  Ixiii.  15. — 31  f.  Garden. 

of  the  forest'  ;  in  Eth.  Enoch  Ixxxix.  Cp.  Isa.  li.  3,  Iviii.  11. — Oak.  Cp.  Isa. 

72,    by   '  wild   boars '   the   Samaritans  Ixi.    3,    '  that    they    mi^^ht    be    called 

appear  to  be  meant.     Whether  in  2  S.  ^,_„_  i,L,v\  -»-^^»^  n 

xvii.  8  we  are  justified  in  following  G,  V^^Jl  YJ:^--34.  HliM  :  cp.   ix.  6, 

which  inserts   koX  coj  5s  rpaxHa-  ^o  t^  xviii.  16,  Ixxvi.  7,  civ.  7. 

Critical  No/es.     i.     ^2"'t^<^   (preceded   by    Pasek).      Tlic   context   is 
against  this.     Read  H'T'Sn  ;  cp.  lines  8,  16,  40. 

T    .     T 

2.  M  ^DV  ^S-^3  jni  •  But  where  is  the  imperative  required  by  the 
pai-allelism  ?  And  is  it  certain  that  'Joseph'  can  be  a  synonym  for  '  Israel' 
(see  on  Ixxvii.  16,  Ixxxi.  5  f.)?  Read  J^ElV  ir-il2  "?jn;!j  ;  D  dropped  (as  if 
dittographic),  y  and  D  confounded  (as  often). 

3  f.  The  verse  division  produces  an  opening  tristich,  which  is 
metrically  wrong.  nySIH  is  plainly  corrupt.  So  also  is  a"'~^3^i  ^^3*? 
rrtiOi^T  '1^2''J2"1  (Pasek  after  D''13^^)•  Why  do  Ephraim,  Benjamin,  and 
Manasseh  receive  such  a  prominent  place  ?  Is  it  because  of  the 
proselytes  from  Galilee  (cp.  2  Chr.  xv.  9,  and  see  Bertholet,  StcUiuiii; 
178)?  But  should  we  not  expect  rather  Zebulun  and  Naphthali  {OP, 
148)  ?  Or  is  it  a  result  of  the  pan-Israelitish  sentiment  of  the  Persian 
period  {OP,  I.e.)  ?  But  if  so,  why  is  Judah  left  out  ?  The  key  is  furnished 
by  Ix.  9,  where  '  Ephraim  '  and  '  Manasseh  '  conceal  names  unfamiliar  to 
the  later  scribes,  yty^l  does  not  occur  in  that  passage,  but  ]^;t3'  (of 
which  the  i;;^"'^^  of  the  text  is  an  expansion)  is  a  pretty  common  cor- 
ruption of  7KI2nT(i  S.  ix.  I,  &.C.).  Who  the  foes  of  Israel  were,  \ve 
know  from  Ps.  Ixxxiii.  and  many  other  psalms.  Read,  therefore, 
m^'DT  '^'hil^ni^  ■'JZl'^ .  D"'"lDJ<i  and  "|Q"'[22]  are  variants  ;  underneath 
both'lies '3*J<Qn"S''-"'''J33'p  is  found  in  some  MSS.  (dc  R.).  '311  should 
probably  be  nnOin  • 

7.  For  Cn'^l^  restore,  of  course,  mn"' ,  and  insert  JTlJ"}!!^  (//•  1 5> 
39).     See  on  lix.  6. 

10.     M  Tjay  n^3rQ   rs:^tli.  ;   the  perfect  as  in  Ex.  x.  3,  xvi.    28, 
'  V  -        -  •   :   •       T  :  -  T 
Hab.  i.  2.     But  (i)  the  elliptical  use  of  \1Vy  (contrast  Ixxiv.  i,  Dt,  xxix. 

19),  and  (2)  the  idea  that  Yahwe  could  be  angry  at  the  prayer  of  the 

pious  community  (Isa.  i.    15   is,  of  course,  not  parallel),  are  intolerable. 

Hence  Lag.,  Now.  (.?)  read  Jli^'^B^.     But  HlD'^S  occurs  nowhere  else  in 

Pss.,  and  elsewhere  no  use  is  made  of  the  idea  of  the  'escaped  ones  of 


J2  THE    PSALMS. 

Israel.'  The  chief  error  hcs  in  the  verb,  which  should  be  VN^Fi  (I-am.  ii. 
6);  transposition  and  sliyht  corruption.  Omit  2  before  '3J1  ;  it  was 
]>refi\ed  to  help  the  sense  trf/c'r  the  verb  had  become  corrupted.  For  a 
parallel  see  /.  12.  For  "jay  read  probably  '^lliy,  or  rather  T7Pr  (^'^^ 
both  see  C). 

II  f.  Read  suffixes  of  1  plur.  ((;  2,  Gr.,  Du.)— M  ni?'2l  •  In  itself 
possible  enough  (cp.  xlii.  4,  Job  iii.  24,  where  read  ^sb).  but  here  unsuitable 
(see  /.  12).     Jer.  ix.  14,  xxiii.  15  guide  us  in  correcting  both  lines.     In  /.  11 

read  H^yS.— M  U^^bt  jliPDl^.     Read  'v:r^^-|  Jliyai-     On  the  prefixed 

T-:-  •  T  T    :  •  :    • 

3,  see  on  /.  10.     Nearly  so  Gnitz  (he  retains  2)-     Del.,  m  commenting  on 

Z^-'b'Z;,  involuntarily  shows  how  unlikely  the  word  is.    Cp.  also  P.  Haupt. 

13  f.  M  \)10.  Read  liiD  (Lag.,  Now.,  Bevan,  J. of  Phil.,  1889,  144  ; 
cp.  xliv.  15)  ;  ^l^")  is  unnecessary.— M  Sr^.  Read  ^i^>  (G  S  J,  Houb., 
Kcnn.,  Gr.,  Du.). 

15.  M  '2*i  □Tl'^J^.  't'N  is  carelessly  substituted  for  Hl/T  (but 
cp.  Kon.  §  285^'). 

26.  M  ^■^^^^.     But 'pluck  it 'is  an  unsuitable  sense.     S  interprets 

T       T : 
'  tread  it  down  '  {"tiT^)-     But  clearly  miyi  is  intended. 

27.  M  ^3Dp')J^  for  T^DD'?  See  OP  478,  and  Kcin.  i.  202.  The 
vss.  paraphrase.  G  fXvfiijvaTo  avrr'jv  (cp.  Acts  viii.  3)  ;  T  nj^")312'.  DDD 
occurs  again  in  Ezek.  xliv.  20  (of  hair),  and  is  not  the  right  word.  Read, 
with  Herz,  nUDDy  ■  The  D  in  'y  is  dittographed  (-|-)1).— M  TTn 
iy^72 ■  The y  si'ispensiun  in  "ly^  has  been  much  discussed.  Was  the y 
omitted  by  accident  and  replaced  above  the  line?  Or  had  the  text 
originally  "TT.S,  which  might  mean  either  ly^Q  or  IS^'D-  There  is 
indeed  a  Talmudic  statement  {KiddiisJtm  -^oa)  that  the  y  siispcnsum 
stands  in  the  middle  of  the  Psalter.  P)Ut  Wayyiki-a  ralba  13  and  the 
Midrash  corroborate  the  view  that  there  was  a  variant  IS^rj,  and 
Pcsahiin  wZb  affirms  that  HJp  T\T\  (Ixviii.  31)  and  -)S*Q  inn  are 
equivalent.  See  Ginsb.,  Introd.,  338  ff.  ;  GrJitz,  MGWj ,  1874,  pp. 
394  fif.,  but  also  Geiger,  Urschrift,  259.  Griitz  and  Herz  prefer  li^SQ , 
but  is  it  likely  that  the  hippopotamus  was  ever  called  '  the  wild  boar  of 
the  Nile  '  ?  We  may  even  go  further  and  question  whether  it  is  probable 
that,  when  much  nobler  symbols  than  the  wild  boar  were  close  at  hand,  a 
psalmist  would  have  selected  this  animal  in  preference.  We,  at  any 
rate,  who  have  found  the  enemies  of  the  Jews  so  constantly  referred  to 
by  ethnic  names,  may  naturally  scrutinize  the  text  to  see  whether  such  an 
ethnic  does  not  underlie  both  "ly^D  (")N^'2)  "1^11  and  the  still  more 
puzzling  nii^  rr  in  the  second  part  of  the  same  verse  (14).  When 
examined  closely,  one  becomes  J^!^")^  and  the  other  "ll^^n  (^  =  Q) ;  in 
short,  both  represent  fragments  of  ':?hiOmV— M  HiiT  TI.  G  iW  (B), 
or  }xicrovu)i  (B'),  or  \>.ov\.oi  (^}«•''•AR"T),  <iypws.     T^I  is  too  mean  and  too 


PSALM    LXXX.  33 

late  a  word  (see  on  1.  ii).  Herz,  ']i;  DID-  I>'it  we  expect  an  ethnic  or 
ethnics.     Read   probably   -n^N")    t'13  ;    IVji'hi  =  "nn'4'S=:  "irL:^:! .— M 

mv^'-   Read  myiv 

TV   :.  T         : 

29  f.  M  ^<:  2yx:  2'^  n^Pibi^-  Plainly  ^*:  nir  comes  from 
U^^IiTI.  The  scribe  beyan  to  write  the  refrain  {z'7'.  4,  8,  20).  But  this 
was  not  the  poet's  intention.  A  more  impassioned  appeal  was  needed, 
such  as  we  find  in  the  passage  beginning  with  QV2W12  tO^n.  [So  now 
Duhm,  who,  however,  omits  7'.  161^  as  a  mere  variant  to  ?'.  18/^,  and 
transfers  7n'.  lyb  and  19  to  Ps.  Ixxix.,  placing  the  former  after  ?'.  7  and 
the  latter  after  v.  13,  a  view  with  which  a  more  thorough  textual  criticism 
enables  us  to  dispense.] — M  jlJ^T-  Read  Tyjl-TIIM  (cp.  crit.  note  on 
Ixxiv.  18). 

31.     M  ni33  with   3    inajusciiliiin ;    perhaps    the    original   text   had 

some    other  letter,  which  being  indistinct  was   erased   by  a  corrector. 

Certainly  nj3  is  confirmed  by  T  S  J,  on  the  supposition  that  it  is  a  noun 

=  ' plant'  (so   Ibn   Ezra,  Kimhi)  ;  G  also  supports   3.   but   apparently 

reads  n233  {Kara^Tifrai  nvTj]p).     I>ut  evidence  for  such  a  noun  is  deficient. 

T-: 
and  the  imperat,  does  not  give  a  good  sense.     Ibn  Janah  rightly  corrects 

r\2D  into  7M12  (so  also  Gr.). 

3.?.  M  ]^~7^1 .  Clearly  either  this  alone,  or  the  whole  stichus,  is 
wrong.  Ew.,  Bo.,  and  Lag.  suppose  that  7'.  16/'  is  an  erroneous  repeti- 
tion of  7'.  18/' ;  G  inserts  QThJ  {dvdpoiTrnv),  harmonizing  with  7'.  18^  (?)  ;  so 

TT. 

S  and  some  MSS.  A  right  view  of  the  poetical  structure,  however,  does 
not  favour  this  view.  If  7/.  16^  is  wrong,  some  other  stichus  must  have 
been  displaced  by  it.  But  considering  that  '^'j  ilD'IDi^  makes  a  very  good 
parallel  to  '!2^  tTPLDJ .  on  condition  that  the  preceding-  word  is  the  name 
of  a  tree  (cp.  Isa.  xliv.  14),  it  is  enough  to  suppose  that  ]2~^y  (from  the 
corrupt  V.  i8<J)  is  incorrect.  Looking  closely  at  it.  we  can  easily  detect 
underlying  it  the  very  suitable  word  pV^^. 

33  f-  ^I  nSnii^.  nmOZ).  To  suit  /.  34  read  mSTii',  mnD3  (cp. 
S),  with  Kcnn.  We.;    Street,  not  so  well,  ^''3"ll:^  rTTTDD-— M  T^S  . 

'    VT 

Read  Ty-g.  So  Prov.  xv.  14,  Kt.  ^J3 ,  but  Kr.  rightly  *3  ;  cp.  also 
Num.  xxxviii.  8. 

35.  M  Tj^T^''  ti^^J^  .  Hitz.  divines  an  allusion  to  Benjamin  (cp.  IM's 
V.  3).  Such  an  allusion  may  have  been  fancied  by  the  scribe  or  editor  to 
whom  the  present  reading  is  due  ;  or  he  may  have  taken  ^12^  in  the  sense 
of  'contract'  (cp.  c.xliv.  8).  But  neither  view  is  satisfactory.  Read 
certainly  either  '?^<,p^"T'  W''i^  .  or  (better)  'm''  ti'lD  (D  and  i^  con- 
founded). 

36.  M  rf?  n^QJ^  DIK"]!!"':'^*  •  '  Israel '  called  '  son  of  man  '  ? 
Clearly  I'^'jTil^N'hVs  comVin'from  /.  32.  Read  'W^rz')  Dl^_  "J?"'^!! 
(cp.  //.  27  f.).     "]':>  may  be  a  fragment  of  '^Nr^H')"'  (/.  35)- 

II.  D 


34  THE    PSALMS. 

37.  Prefix  ^Jl^l^n  (note  |1  line),  and  for  ^Sv^  read  perhaps  "IIDJ . 
;nD  in  Kal  seems  doubtful.  In  liii.  4  we  should  perhaps  read  ID  (as 
xiv.  3),  and  in  Prov.  xi.  14,  jiDJ  • 


PSALM    LXXXI. 

1  wo  distinct  psalm-fragments,  as  Olshausen  first  observed,  are  here  combined, 
like  jewels  on  one  thread.  Both  consist  of  trimeters.  The  first  is  a  conventional, 
however  earnest,  liturgical  song  of  praise  to  Yahwe  as  King  (cp.  xlvii.,  xcv.,  \c.). 
The  second  is  a  solenm  protestation  of  Yahwe  in  the  tone  of  Deuteronomy  ;  see 
£.,;,'•.  on  //.  9-12,  23  f  'ihere  is  an  equally  rhetorical  passage  in  Mic.  vi.  1-6, 
wliere,  according  to  the  most  probable  and  defensible  text  (see  Cnt.  Bid.),  the 
early  subjugation  of  the  Jerahmeelites  (in  the  Negeb  and  in  Canaan  proper)  is 
referred  to,  certainly  not  for  an  ornamental  purpose,  but  with  a  view  to  point  a 
moral.  The  warning  against  foreign  gods  in  v.  10  is  no  reason  for  assigning 
I's.  Ixxxi.,  witii  Baethgen  and  Kirk  pat  rick,  to  the  last  years  of  the  kingdom  of 
Judah.  The  imitative  character  of  both  parts  of  the  psalm  is  enougli  to  forbid 
liiis.  In  vv.  14  ff.  we  even  find  the  psalmist  imitating  Isa.  xlviii.  17-19,  which  is 
itself  probably  a  late  insertion  {Jn(r.  Js.  302  ;  cp.  JNIarti)  ;  i.e.  he  knows  Isa. 
xlviii.  in  something  like  its  present  form.  It  is  no  objection  to  this  view  that  the 
post-exilic  Jews  did  walk  in  the  '  ways  '  {i.e.  religious  laws)  of  Vahwc,  for  there  is 
good  reason  to  think  that  Ezra  by  no  means  succeeded  in  putting  down  at  once  the 
inveterate  Jewish  tendency  towards  heathenish  practices  (cp.  Intr.  Is.  316). 
Among  phraseological  points,  note  jm"1^1\£/  (eight  times  in  Jer.,  once  in  Dt.). 
The  omission  of  v.  iia  and  the  transposition  of  v.  6b  seem  to  justify  themselves. 

LXXXI. 1. 

Deposited.     0/ the  Ishmaelites  {}).     0/ Asaph.  I 

I       Give  acclamations  to  Yahwe  our  Rock,  2 

Shout  for  joy  to  the  God  of  Jacob  ; 

Make  melody  to  his  name  with  the  timbrel,  3 

With  the  sweet  notes  of  the  lyre  and  the  harp. 

Blow  the  horn  in  the  sanctuary,  4 

Sing  to  Yahwe  our  king  ; 

For  he  is  the  marshal  of  Israel,  ? 

Our  judge  is  the  God  of  Jacob. 

3  f.    Cp.  cxlix.  3,  cl.  3  f — 7.  For  these  titles  of  Yahwe,  see  Isa.  xxxiii.  21  f. 

Critical  Notes,     l.x.xxi."'     i.   M  ^Miy.    Read  1^-)"):;^  (see  on   x.xviii.  7). 

3  f.     ISI    5lh"^Jj"11    ^■1DT■•^^<■;:r .  "The  idioms  are  not  Hebrew    (Job 
:  T :  .  : 

.xxi.  12  is  corrupt)  ;  WF's  translation  is  much  too  free.  Read  ?)T£!T 
=1j1^  ^^V  •  M's  IJJIT  probably  arose  out  of  a  dittographed  li^D-— 
M  ^arny  li33 .     Read  b'lTi^  -1133  T^'pT^^  •     Cp.  on  cl.  4^. 

5  f.     M  'ti^in^  ,  'at  the  new  moon  '.''     G  iv  veofj.t]via.     In  the  ||  line  M 
gives  nD321(so  Baer,Ginsb.).  According  to  the  Talmud  (see  Levy),  '3  =  the 


PSALM    LXXXI. — 2.  35 

covering  of  the  moon, /.^.  the  new  moon,  which  produces  a  perfect  paralleHsm, 
but  is  obviously  a  poor  guess.  G  ei/  euo-ij/iw  (favourable).  Most  moderns, 
however,  hold  that  HDD  (Frov.  vii.  20,  i^DH)  means  the  'full  moon'  (cp. 
'A  J)  ;  for  supposed  derivation  see  BDB,  and  cp.  Toy  on  Prov.  /.c.  It  is 
also  usual  to  render  'H  DV7  '/or  our  feast-day.'  But  several  points 
remain  very  uncertain.  That  the  poet  means  that  the  horn  was  to  be 
blown  on  two  occasions,  is  the  reverse  of  probable  ;  that  nDD  is  another 
way  of  writing  i^VD  is  unproved  ;  the  reference  of  ^^Stl  is  obscure  ; 
and  against  the  proposed  rendering  of  'fT  D^V  w'e  may  refer  to  Hos. 
ix.  5,  Prov.  vii.  20.  Lines  5  and  6  must  be  corrupt.  Let  us  take  each 
part  separately.  Plainly  (see  vv.  2  f.)  we  have  before  us  in  vv.  2-5  a 
fragment  of  an  'accession-psalm'  (cp.  Pss.  xlvii.,  xcv.,  &c.);  and  not  less 
plainly,  vu.  4,  5  are  not  appropriate  for  such  a  poem.  The  remedy  is  not 
far  to  seek.  For  ')'E}VV  Z^in2  read  ]V1^3.  ISViT  (cp.  cl.  i).  And  what 
of  npiDH  ?  VD2.  represents  a  dittographed  tD~]p2.  ',  71  should  be  attached 
to  V^  which  follows.  V  does  double  duty.  First,  it  represents  17  ,  so 
producing  I'^'^H  •  Next,  it  is  also  a  fragment  of  mH^  ;  perhaps  it  arose 
out  of  ^> ,  an  abbreviation  of  the  Tetragrammaton.  The  final  Q  in  DV  / 
(final  letters  established  themselves  but  slowly)  should  be  connected  with 
l!inn ,  so  producing  I^JFTQ  ,  ?'■''•  1J3'^itD  .  a  word  which  could  not  fail  to 
occur  in  this  context. 

7  f.  M  N^n  '^STli^''':'  p'n  "^3  ■  The  reference  of  hJl.l  is  obscure 
(see  Hupf.-Now.),  and  ho\v  can  ^'hilli'"'  be  ||  to  ^PV  ''7t?iib  ?  What  we 
expect  is  a  glorification  of  Yahwe.  Remembering  Isa.  xxxiii.  21  (and 
Ps.  Ixviii.  27,  corr.  text)  emend  pfl  into  pphl2  ■— M  l^BVD  ■  Read 
^y^i^V  (Isa.  xxxiii.  22);  ^2  =  ^2  •— M  ''r\'?iib  .    "Omit  first  '^  (dittogr.). 

LXXXI. 2. 

I       I  released  thee  from  the  hand  of  Ishmael,  6a 

I  brought  thee  out  of  the  land  of  Alisrim; 
I  delivered  thee  from  the  toils  of  Ishmael,  7 

From  the  snare  of  Missur  and  the  Arabians. 

Thou  didst  call  in  trouble,  and  I  rescued  thee,  8 

Amidst  issuing  lightnings  I  answered  thee  : 

Thou  didst  prove  me  at  the  waters  of  Meribah  ; 

Thou  didst  open  thy  mouth  wide,  and  I  filled  it.  ua 

Hear,  O  my  people  !  and  I  will  warn  thee  ;  9 

ID     O  Israel,  if  thou  wouldst  hearken  unto  me  ! 

Let  no  strange  god  be  in  thee,  10 

Do  not  thou  worship  any  foreign  god." 

'  I  am  Yahwe  thy  God,  who  brought  thee  out  of  the  land  of  Mi.srim  (v.  ii<;)- 


36  THE    PSALMS. 

But  my  people  hearkened  not  to  my  voice,  12 

Israel  was  not  compliant  unto  me ; 

So  I  let  them  go  in  the  obstinacy  of  their  heart,  13 

That  they  might  walk  in  their  own  counsels. 

Oh  that  ni}'  people  would  hearken  unto  me,  14 

That  Israel  would  walk  in  my  ways  ! 

Right  soon  would  I  subdue  his  enemies,  15 

20     And  turn  my  hand  against  his  foes. 

Those  that  hated  him  would  seek  him  eagerl}-,  16 

And  would  become  his  servants  (?)  for  ever. 
From  those  of  Jerahmeel  would  I  rescue  him,  17 

From  Missur  and  Zephath  would  I  deliver  them.' 

1-4.  There  is   .1   contrast   between        16,  iS,  Hab.  iii.  4.  —  Meribah,  &c.    See 

the   ancient    deliverance    from    Misrim        Ex.  xvii.  1-7. 

and  the  present  long-continued  Misrite  „  /-      t^^  _  /t-  \ 

•         /  /?     .„   ,   \  -7^  •/  9-12.     Co.  Dt.  V.  I,  7  (Lx.  XX.  X), 

oppression    (cp.    //.     19-24).  —  T^/A,         •    ^.    wv    .c-^o 


sitarc.     Cp.    xviii.     6,    cxxiv.    7,    <.\:c. 


vi.  3  f.,  XXX.  15-20. 


Ish/iiael,  &c.  Cp.  Ixxvii.  16,  Ixxx.  3.  13-16.  Imitated  from  Jer.  vii.  24. 
The  received  text  (G  nearly  agrees)  — 17  f-  Cp.  Isa.  xlviii.  17-19. 
gives,  'I  removed  his  shoulder  from  21.  Cp.  xviii.  45.  On  M's  Iti^fTD'' 
the  burden ;  his  hands  passed  from  the  Loeb  remarks,  '  There  is  here  a 
basket,'  which  is  taken  to  be  a  vivid  nuance  of  hypocrisy.  But  it  is  some- 
description  of  the  change  from  servitude  thing  that  the  nations  aftect  submission, 
to  freedom.  See,  however,  crit.  note.  and  these  lying  flatteries  are  only  a 
—  V.  6/'  in  M  G  has  no  connexion.  stronger  proof  of  the  power  of  Him 
Hence  Ol.  supposed  a  lacuna  in  the  who  imposes  them  '  {La  litteratitre  dcs 
text.     But  see  crit.  note  on  /.  7.  paiivrcs,  p.  97).      See,    however,    crir. 

note. — 23  f.    Corresponding  to  //.  3  f. 

6-8.     Xlg:htnlng-s.     Cp.  Ex.  xix.  See  crit.  note. 

Critical  Notes.  lxxxi.<-'  i.  I\I  S':2V  ^D^TV2.  I  mij,*.  Note  the 
warning  Pasek  after  'J7.  If  the  whole  of  Ps.  l.xxxi.  is  really  one  psalm, 
miy  (if  correct)  will  naturally  refer  either  to  the  'day  of  our  feast,' or 
to  the  precept  of  the  'blowing  of  the  horn  '  (7'.  4).  Griitz  renders,  'as  the 
festival-time  he  appointed  it  in  (Judah)  and  Joseph/  comparing  c.xxii.  4, 
'^KTvi'^'^  mij.',  which  he  renders,  '  an  assembly  for  Israel.'  Both  here 
and  in  cxxii.  4,  however.  j"n"7^',  if  right,  ought  to  mean 'law.'  But  is 
there  any  sound  evidence  that  it  does  mean  '  law.'  Then,  what  is  to  be 
said  of  5]Din'^  ?  Resolved  verbal  forms  like  "\TV  are  very  suspicious 
(see  on  x.xviii.  7),  nor  can  '  Joseph '  be  a  designation  of  the  entire  people 
of  Israel  (cp.  E/tc.  Bib.,  col.  2582,  note  2).  Gnitz  would  read 
^DV[T  rmliT^  .  /•'■■  in  S.  and  N.  Israel.  But  if  the  poet  had  meant  to 
speak  of  S.  Israel  as  'Judah  '  and  N.  Israel  as  'Joseph,'  he  would  have 
distributed  these  names  in  two  parallel  lines.  It  would  be  better  to  read 
J^'^'i'n  TVi^*2>    f^Il  miy,  at  least  on  the  assumption  that  we  may  keep 

'  [From]  Zephath  [and]  Jerahmeel  would  I  deliver  them  (r-.  6/'). 


PSALM    LXXXI. — 2,  37 

j~nTP  >  explaining  it  of  tlie  admonition  beginning.  'Hear,  O  my  people' 
(see  Enc.  Bid.,  I.e.).  Certainly  the  resemblance  (noticed  by  Kimhi) 
between  "1^1  ^J^^<^2  and  (ien.  xli.  45  cannot  be  held  to  prove  that 
'Joseph'  is  here  referred  to.  It  is,  however,  at  least  as  easy  and 
decidedly  more  natural  to  take  a  hint  from  7't'.7,8,and  look  beneath  the  pre- 
sent text  oiv.ba  for  a  statement  of  Yahwo's  great  deliverance  of  his  people 
in  the  olden  times,  and  to  read ':)X^'''3Ii>"'  TrO  '^"/T'lt)  (cp.  Mic.  vi.  4,  CriL 
Bib.),  il  in  PjOin^  may  represent,  not  merely  "T ,  but  n,  and  5^DV  (as 
probably  in  Ixxvii.  16,  Mic.  vi.  4)  come  from  b'ii.y^'^'' ■  IDZ* ,  as  in 
numerous  parallel  casc^  may  be  a  fragment  of  a  correction  of  the 
preceding  false  reading,  i.e.  =  'rjti'V 

2.  M  DniiO  Sm^-bV  M-\i^)i2 .  G  J  T  (ait.)  'T2  \li^^  ;  so 
Dathe.  The  M.S.S.  of  Pesh.  vary  (see  Barnes,  y.  d/  Tlieol.  St.,  ii.  191 
[1901]).  Y'^^?!2  is  surely  right ;  'J^~7V  ™ay  have  arisen  from  a  remi- 
niscence of  Gen.  xli.   45.     '^2    should    probably   be   ^^nX^^I  (7   was 

indicated  by  a  stroke).     M  adds  yrjilL'hJ  ^^lyl■'"^^b   JlS^i; ,  '  I  hear  (or, 

T  :   V       •  :  -T  -  : 

heard)  an  unknown  discourse  '  (cp.  Bauniann,  Hcbr.  J\clativsiU::i\  39),  or 

'  the  discourse  of  one  unknown.'  Duhm,  '  when  he  (Jacob-Joseph)  had 
gone  to  Egypt,  (and)  heard  a  language  which  he  did  not  understand ' 
(reading  "^hi  and  J,'12ti^'';  cp.  G,  ykuiacrav  fjv  oik  (yv(o  t'JKovafv).  He  com- 
pares cxiv.  1,  Tp7  D^!2  J  'living  among  a  people  with  a  foreign  language 
was  bad  for  Israel's  religion.'  But  see  crit.  note  on  cxiv.  i.  Remember- 
ing that  glosses  and  variants  not  seldom  get  into  the  text,  sometimes  a 
good  way  off  from  the  jiassage  to  which  they  refer,  we  may  read — 
DP^'^:^*^  '^S^nTr^  r\^T2r  a  variant  to  /.  28  {v.  17^).  Cp.  M^'T  ^i^  in 
XXXV.  I  [b. 

3.  M  ^t2DU}  b2D^2  ^"I'lTDn  •  A  somewhat  strained  expression, 
and  the  more  doubtful  on  account  of  /.  4.  In  this  context  it  is  plain 
that  "^^D  (cp.  ':'3rM)  comes  from  '7S^';:2i:^V  lltDDti'  might  come  from 
^'S^') ,  hut  more  probably  we  should  transpose,  and  read  'l^iy  li'pbD  ; 
'on  should  perhaps  be  ^''np'v^,*,!  . 

4.  M  nj')aj>j"l  1M:2  VDD  .  VSD  cannot  be  right.  We  should 
expect  VBJni)  (||  l!^3!i^).  The  ambiguous  word  "Til  is  also  very  im- 
probable. The  usual  theory  is  that  a  basket  for  carrying  clay  to  the 
brick-kiln  is  meant.  But  why  is  nothing  said  of  the  brick-making.' 
Some  MS.S.  and  edd.  have  ni,^  .  Probably  'ID  comes  from  Tl^r.S ,  a 
name  which  the  editors  often  do  their  best  to  efface.  To  produce  a  good 
parallelism  read  D^QHi^T  IV^D  113^  • 

6.     M  D>n  "iriDH ,    '  in    the   covert    of  thunder,'   i.e.    '  in    a  stonn- 

cloud'?     See  xviii.  12,  where,  however,  such  a  phrase  is  more  natural 

than  here.     Read  D^p12  Tl.^liB  (p  and  ]>  confounded).     Cp.  Hab.  iii.  4. 
.  T  :  ••  :     ' 


38  THE    PSALMS. 

7  f.  M  ^:3^3^J  •  Surely  wc  require  "'Jjnan  .—Read  Tj-^  ri^n"}n 
'7*^^^^  ■ — K  S.'end.  n^D.  as  in  Iwvii.  16,  <tc..  may  represent  t'J^bni* , 
a  correci  g\oss  on  n^^nO  (Meribath-kadesh  =  Jerahmeel-kadesh). 

12.  M  G  insert,  as  7".  i\a,  the  greater  part  of  Ex.  xx.  2  (Dt.  v.  6). 
This  spoils  the  structure  of  the  poem,  and  the  passage  reads  better 
witliout  it. 

21  f.     Read  rSJ'^ITQ  (so  too  Du.),  and  for  ^Z^T^2''  read  UnUf^^  (see 

on  xviii.  45). — M  q'?!!''?    UPW   "'H^I  (so  too   G).     A  reference  to  Israel 

is  altogether  out  of  place.     Herz  and  Duhm  (after  S)  read  QFin  ,  'their 

terror '(?);   Griitz,  Dj"1"1TN  •     Surely   the   corruption  lies    deeper.      One 

T  t:  v 
expects  VT2V  VH^V     But  this  is  a  bare  possibilitv. 
T  T  -:       :  • : 

23  f.      M    niarr   q'^HD   lil^DS^.      a  very  improbable  change  of 

person.     Hence  Houb.,  Dathe,  Del.,  Bi.,  Che.'",  Ba.,  Kau.  read  'D^^NT  ; 

Duhm,   '^ihil ;    while  G  S  give  3rd  pers.   in  both    a  and  /'.      But  the 

difficulty   lies   deeper.     Can    'the   fat  of  wheat '   (cxlvii.    14,    D'^n    Tf) 

possibly  be  right?     In  Dt.  xxxii.  14  (M)  the  phrase  becomes  'the  fat  of 

kidneys  of  wheat.'     Worse  and  worse.     Corruption  is  the  cause  of  it.  as 

shown  in  Crif.  Bib.,  ad loc.     In  the  passage  before  us  we  should  read 

[PDr?]  ':'N,::n-i^o  ^^^'-^'^D^l-  ''■^^*^»'^  JiDr^  is  a  variant  to  "rs^n-iv 

There  are  few  better  specimens  of  the  quaint  ingenuity  of  the  editors  in 
dealing  with  corrupt  readings,  and  few  more  cogent  disproofs  of  the 
theory  that  the  simplest  emendations  are  always  the  best. — ISI  "ll^'J'l 
"^r^'fX  ^21.  I  MS.  de  R.  has  C]-2{^ ,  and  01.,  Lag.,  Dy.,  Gr., 
Bruston,  Nowack,  Wellh.,  adopt  this  (cp.  Prov.  xvi.  24).  On  the  other 
hand  Bii.  and  Du.  invoke  the  ||  passage.  Dt.  xxxii.  13.  But  surely  this 
passage  is  deeply  corrupt  (sec  Crii.  Bib.),  and  a  keener  methodical 
criticism  compels  us  in  our  passage  to  read  D);''*^^;}^  DS'jI^  "lliiSiD . 
This  is  confirmed  by  v.  bb,  a  variant  to  v.  i-jb,  under  which  the  original 
text  can  clearly  be  discerned.  Wellh. 's  note  {Ski::c?i.  vi.  179)  seems  to 
miss  the  main  point. 


PSALM  LXXXII. 

1  KiMETKRs  (except  the  appendix,  which  consists  of  two  tetrameters).  The 
traditional  text  sugt^ests  that  Vahwe,  the  supreme  head  of  the  assembly  of  the 
heavenly  ones,  has  summoned  the  angels  (conventionally  called  the  'divine  ones' 
and  '  the  sons  of  the  Most  High')  to  hear  an  expostulation  and  a  warning  of  the 
gravest  import.  The  charge  brought  against  these  patron-angels  of  the  nations  is 
that  they  have  (in  the  persons  of  their  human  subordinates)  committed  acts  of 
such  gross  violence  and  injustice  that  the  moral  bases  of  the  earth  are  shaken. 
Unable  to  answer  the  charge,  they  are  threatened  with  the  one  great  evil  common 
to  princes  and  peasants  alike  among  their  human  subjects.  In  Isa.  xxiv.  21  f.  the 
celestial  patrons  of  the  earthly  kinijfloms  are  represented  as  'visited'  {i.e. 
inmished)  for  their  offences  ;  it  would  be  in  harmony  with  this  that  when  the 
tyrannical  earthly  kingdoms  were  overthrown,  their  heavenly  patrons  should,  like 


PSALM    LXXXII.  39 

tlie  tiansf^iessing  inhaljitants  of  llie  mountain  of  tlie  gods  (Isa.  xiv.  14  f.,  Ezek. 
xxviii.  16),  be  expelled  from  the  divine  abode  and  suffer  the  punishment  of  death 
(see  /".*•.(",  229 f.;  OP,  120  ;  Smend,  AT  J\el.-gesc/iS-\  45i);cp.  I's.  Iviii.  Itwouhl 
be  strange,  however,  that  the  conception  of  tiie  patron-angels  of  kingdoms  should 
appear  only  in  two  of  the  psalms,  and  a  keen  criticism  disallows  its  right  of 
existence.  The  judges  so  severely  chastised  are  human  judges;  they  are  oppres- 
sive Jewish  rulers  '  of  the  down-trodden  ]ii<)us  Jews,  who  show  that  they  deny 
\'ahwe  by  rejecting  tiie  fundamental  jirecepts  of  his  law,  and,  as  other  psalms 
enable  us  to  add,  by  acting  in  concert  with  still  more  powerful  oppressors  of  non- 
Jewish  origin  (cp.  xciv.  3-7).     Yahwe  solemnly  calls  them  to  account  for  this, 

declares  them  to  be  D^/I2^  ,  'impious  ones'  (=  deniers  of  Ciod)  and  'sons  of 
Belial,'  and  threatens  them  with  a  violent  death  in  the  very  land  from  which  their 
leaders  in  wickedness  came.  Summing  up  the  offences  of  these  men  as  '  profana- 
tion '  of  Vahwe,  a  liturgical  appendix  calls  upon  Yahwe  to  cany  out  the  great 
final  Messianic  judgment.  Cp.  Ps.  xiv.,  where  Yahwe  is  said  to  '  look  down  from 
heaven  '  on  the  ojipression  of  his  people  (without  any  reference  to  patron-angels). 

Marked.     Of  Asaph.  I 

I       Yahwe  stands  in  the  assembly  of  Israel, 
He  judges  the  league  of  the  nnpious  : 

'  How  long  will  ye  judge  unjustly,  2 

And  show  partiality  to  the  wicked  ? 

Judge  the  down-trodden  and  the  orphan,  3 

Do  justice  to  the  sufferers  and  the  needy, 
Deliver  the  helpless  and  the  poor,  4 

Snatch  them  from  the  grasp  of  the  wicked.' 

They  neither  perceive  nor  give  attention,  5 

10     They  go  about  with  deeds  [of  violence], 
***** 

All  the  foundations  of  the  earth  are  tottering. 

'+This-f-  I  declare — that  ye  are  impious  ones,  6 

And  workers  of  utter  ruin  are  ye  all  ; 

Surely  in  Edom  shall  ye  die,  7 

In  Jerahmeel,  O  ye  wicked  !  shall  ye  fall. ' 

Litiiri^icai  Appendix. 

Arise,  O  Yahwe  !  judge  the  earth,  8 

18     For  thou  art  profaned  among  all  the  traitors. 

I  f.  The  '  league   of    the  impious '  Ixxiv.  2) ;  this  agrees  with  xxvi.  4  f., 

is    here    represented    as   a   section    of  1.  18,  Hi.  3.     Impiety  may  be  shown  in 

,,         r     T        1  !    /_-,-,,,  different  ways;  here,  it  is  exhibited  by 

the    'assemi)ly    of     Israel      (^jHi;..  acts  of  judicial  injustice. 


'  Unless,  indeed,  we  .suppose  that  '?i«{TZ''in  ?•.  I  is  miswritten  for  "^KyDti/* 
(Ishmael),  an  error  which  has  now  and  then  occurred. 


40  THE    PSALMS. 

3.     Ho\7  long-.     Tlie    cry  of  the  community  (cp.  xciv.  5  f.).  — 17  f.  The 

impatient  N'ahwc  (cp.  Kx.  x.  3,  xvi.  28,  appendix   !■;   recognized   by  Duhni  and 

Num.    xiv.    II,    27).      5-8.  The  terms  (Irimm  (Liliirg.  App.,    19),   though  its 

'orphan,'   i^-c,    represent    the    Jewish  purport  is  not  quite  correctly  stated. 

Ct  ideal  Noics.  if.  ^I  '?^<"/^lV5  •  Read  probably '^^^-1t^>-Jn■T17^  . 
Cp.  Hos.  X.  15,  bti  Jl-n,  C,  otKos  Tov'n(T,mni\.—M  UThi^  ^'"?,i?.'^'-  ^^^"^^ 
probably  D^'?^^  l^n  .  Ihe  initial  "2,  i>i  QHp^  may  perhaps  represent 
2.    in    D^'?33-~=;-   ^l'  b"^  ■     Read    probably  r\1  ;  so  Gr.,  cp.  \.   18.     '^1 

T  T  T 

follows  in  /.  7. 

10.     M     nD'yi^m .      Read    [DOn]    "'ii'1'123-      Similar   correction    in 
T  ••  -:-  T  T         ••  -:-  : 

Ix.xiv.  20. 

13  f.  M  D'n'^S.  Read  ub^^  (/•  2).— M  ]V^y  ^^^1  •  Read 
•l^r^^n   ^J^Kcp.  Iviii.  3,0- 

iSf.     Xo  poet  would  have  written  thus.     M  DIJO  •     Read   D^J^iil  • 

T  T  : 
Less  obvious  is  D"'1J2D   (cp.  on  xlix.   I3)-— M  QH'^'ri   inN3  •     beer, 

n"V'"tir\  :  C.  Margoliouth   (Acad..  ^Larch    18,  1893)  and   Duhm",  □"'irn. 

Rcad'pi'obably  D'^i^in   '?N::m'l  (written  'mO  ?)• 
•    T    :t 

18.  M  D^iiin'^^D^l  "^V}:!!^-  For  'jn  (h-.,  Hal.,  We.  and  Du.  read 
Vli^ltDFI  >  (0  because  ^H^  does  not  have  3  after  it.  and  (2)  because  Israel 
is  Yahwc's  nVnj  ,  not  the  nations.  This  is  too  bold  ;  Herz  seems  to 
have  a  better  thou.^h  not  a  perfect  suggestion.  For  tTF^Tl  he  would 
read  ^TTJ ;  /l  he  views  as  a  virtual  dittogram  (il  precedes).  Rather  read 
n'^'nj .  Cp.  Ezek.  xxii.  16,  ^D^HJ  (in  a  speech  of  Vahwe  ;  see  Cornill), 
xxxvi.  20  (Yahwc's  name  profaned). — 18.  M  D^'lilH  .  Read  D'lH^n  (cp. 
on  ix.  6,  and  see  (},  Hab.  i.  5,  01  KnTa^pov-qral  =  D^"T!)3n)- 


PSALM    LXXXIII. 

X  RIMETER.  A  passionate  cry  towards  heaven  in  response  to  the  words  of  the 
foe  in  7,'.  5.  The  N.  Arabian  peoples,  whose  ancient  names  give  an  archaic 
colouring  to  the  poem,  are  represented  as  having  combined  against  Israel,  whom 
they  have  resolvetl  to  sweep  away  from  the  face  of  the  euth.  The  psalmist  prays 
that  Yahwe  will  bestir  himself,  for  it  is  a  war,  not  only  of  peoples,  but  of  religions 
(v.  3).  May  he  destroy  the  enemies  as  in  the  time  of  Deborah  and  of  Gideon. 
Many  commentators  both  in  anticpiily  (especially  Theod.  of  Mops.)  and  in 
modern  times  (Hitz.,  (Jl.,(jr.,  Dulini)  have  found  the  occasion  of  our  psalm  in  the 
events  related  in  I  Mace.  v.  i  fi'.  Cp.  Hertholet,  S/r-//i/>i^,  216  ;  Cheyne,  OT,  98. 
That  the  work  is  of  late  origin,  is  undeniable.  This  appears,  not  so  much  from 
the  archaistic  suffixes  in  77'.  12,  14,  or  from  the  appositional  locution  in  -■.  12,  as 
from  the  passionate  rcentment  which  pervades  the  psalm,  and  which  presupposes 
the  overthow  of  the  kingdom  and  the  oppression  which  fjilowed,  and  is  confirmed 
by  the  reference  to  early  history,  and  by  the  extraordinary  combination  of  ethnics 
in  vv.  7-9  (see  note).  If  '  (Jebal '  is  right  in  f.  8,  it  is  specially  corroborative  of 
this  view,    being    the    -\rabic    designation    of  the    mountain-range    of   Seir,    and 


PSALM     LXXXIII.  41 

pointing,  llierefore,  to  tlie  Persian  and  Greek  period,  when  the  Nabativan  Arabs 
hecame  masters  of  the  land  of  Edom.  To  this  question  we  shall  return  in  the 
crit.  note  on  /.  13.  There  is,  however,  no  need  to  seek  the  occasion  of  the  psalm 
among  the  events  of  the  Maccalnvan  rising,  nor  indeed  do  we  hear  at  that  period 
of  a  coalilioii  of  the  peoples  understood  to  be  referred  to  in  vv.  7-9.'  As  we  have 
seen  (on  Ps.  Ixxx.),  there  may  well  have  been  an  earlier  period  of  Jewish  history, 
when  the  expressions  of  this  psalm  were  fully  justified.  Would  that  there  were 
external  evidence  justifying  us  in  using  more  confident  language  !  Ps.  ii.  is  in 
several  places  parallel  to  our  psalm,  and  may  perhaps  be  regarded  as  an  imitation. 

Marked.      Of  Asaph.  I 

1        O  Yahwe  !  liold  not  thy  peace,  2 

Be  not  still,  rest  not,  O  God  ! 

For  lo,  thine  enemies  are  in  an  uproar,  3 

Those  that  hate  thee  lift  up  their  heads. 

They  range  themselves  in  order  against  thy  people,  4 

And  take  theij-  stand  against  thy  poor  ; ' 

'  Come,  let  us  extinguish  them  as  a  people,  5 

And  let  the  name  of  Israel  be  mentioned  no  more.' 

For  those  of  Jerahmeel  have  consulted,  6 

10     Against  thee  they  make  a  covenant, 

Edom  and  those  of  Ishmael,  •  7 

[The  people  of]  Moab  and  the  Hagrites, 

Gebal,  Ammon,  and  Amalek,  8 

Pelesheth  with  the  dwellers  in  Missur  ; 

Asshur  also  has  joined  them,  "  9 

They  have  become  allies  to  the  sons  of  Peleth. 

O  God  !  deal  with  them  '^  as  with  Sisera,  10 

As  with  Jabin  at  the  torrent  of  Kishon, 

Who  were  destroyed  with  none  to  survive  them,  ii 

20     Who  became  as  dung  for  the  ground. 

Destroy  them  like  Oreb  and  like  Zeeb,  12 

Like  Zebah  and  like  Shalman  extinguish  them. 
Who  have  said,  '  Let  us  take  in  possession  13 

All  the  habitations  of  God.' 


'  As  an  indication  of  the  date  of  the  psalm  (see  v.  S/>)  Robertson  Smith 
{0'jyC^-\  439)  refers  to  a  notice  of  Pseudo-Scylax  (written  under  Artaxerxes 
Ochus)  which  makes  Ascalon  a  Tyrian  possession.  ]5ul  the  correctness  of  the 
reading  '  Ascalon  '  is  doubtful. 

-  They  say. 

■'  As  with  Midian. 


42 


THE    PSALMS. 


O  my  God  !  make  lliem  as  stubble, 
As  stalks  of  straw  before  the  wind. 
As  fire  burns  up  the  forest, 
Or  as  a  flame  sets  mountains  ablaze, 

So  pursue  them  with  thy  storm, 
30     And  with  thy  hurricane  affright  them. 
Fill  their  countenance  with  disgrace, 
Let  them  be  ashamed  and  affrighted  together, 

Until  they  desist  and  serve  thee, 
And  seek  thy  name,  O  Yahwe  ! 
And  perceive  that  thou — thou  alone — 
Art  the  Most  High  over  all  the  earth. 


14 

IS 

16 

iSa 

19 


I.  'jl'  ^r21  '?i^  ,  as  Isa.  Ixii.  7.— 
3.  n*On  ,  as  xlvi.  4. — 6-8.  Cp.  Ixxiv. 
//.  7,  17  f. 

II  ff.  The  list  of  peoples  \s  pardy 
conventional.  Cp.  the  list  in  Ivi.,  //. 
5-8,  where  the  names  are  Arabians, 
Asshurites,  Zarejjhaih,  Jerahmeel.  In 
Iv.,  //.  21-24,  the  list  is  longer.  See 
also  xcii.,  /.  13;  xciv.f",  /.  13  f .  ; 
Sirach  1.  26.  The  last  of  these  pas- 
sages specifies  three  'hateful'  peoples. 
For  the  Samaria  of  the  Greek  we 
should,  as  most  agree,  read  '  Seir ' 
(=  Edom)  ;  '  Philistines,'  i.e.  Peie- 
sheth,  should  he  '  Zarephathites'  (see 
below),  and  Shechem  (see  Eiic.  Bib., 
'  Shechem,'  2)  should  be  'Cusham.' 
The  passage  may  or  may  not  be  Ben 
Sira's  work,  but  at  any  rale  it  shows 
the  persistent  hatred  of  Edom  and  (m 
'  Zarephath  '  and  'Cusham  ')  the  fond- 
ness of  late  writers  for  archaic  names. 

II.  fidom.  Here,  at  any  rate, 
there  is  no  conventionality,  hh'nacl, 
a  synonym  for  'Jerahmeel.' 

13.  Gebal.  See  on  xiv.,  /.  i. 
The  name  may  be  an  inrlication  of  date 
(see  introd.).  Hut  it  is  just  possible 
to  connect  'Gebal"  with  'Gebalon,' 
which  appears  (no  more  than   this  is 


claimed)  to  be  s^imetimes  used  for  the 
Jerahmeelite     mountains.      Cp.     Crii. 

Bib.  on  Q^t'^iin,  i  l"^-  ^'^  32,  and  note 
on  xxix.  6.     Hommel  {Aiifsatze,  iii.  i, 

p.  280)  doubtfully  reads  'b'^l'^ ,  'the 
Ijorders  (of).'  A  maid:,  i.e.  Jerahmeel. 
Properly  the  less  advanced,  predatory 
portion  of  the  race  is  thus  designated. 
But  the  writer  merely  uses  this  archaic 
name  to  swell  the  list  of  ethnics. 

14.  Pelesheth.  The  poet  means, 
not  Philistia,  but  Zarephath  in  N. 
Arabia.  We  keep  the  incorrect  name 
because  of  the  shortened  form  Peleth 
in  /.  16.  Pelesheth  is  grouped  with 
Missur  as  in  Joel  iv.  4  (see  Crit.  Bib.). 

15.  The  troublesome  Asshtir  (which 
^Y.  R.  Smith,  0T/O-\  439,  supposed 
to  refer  to  the  satrap  of  Syria)  is  a  N. 
Arabian  region,  near  Missur,  otherwise 
called  Ashluir  and  (cp.  Eiic.  Bib., 
'Geshur,'  2)  Geshur.  For  other  views 
see  OP,  p.  109,  notes  aa  and  /'/'.' — T/ie 
sons  of  Pektii.  The  text  has  '  the  sons 
of  Lot'  (Dt.  ii.  9,  19).  This  would 
be  the  only  reference  (but  see  Crit. 
Bib.  on  Isa.  xxv.  7)  to  Lot  outside  the 
Pentateuch.  But  the  reading  is  ques- 
tionable. It  is  very  improbable  that 
the   poet    meant    to    give    precedence 


'  It  is  there  stated  that  '  though  "  Asshur"  may  mean  Persia,  represented  iiy 
the  satrap  (Ezra  vi.  22),  it  is  more  natural  (Babylon  being  out  of  the  question)  to 
take  it  as  equivalent  to  Syria.'  It  is  probable,  however,  that  in  Zech.  x.  lO  f.  and 
Isa.  xxvii.  13,  and  also  in  Ezra  vi.  22,  it  is  neither  Syria,  nor  Assyria,  nor  Persia, 
that  the  writers  meant,  but  a  N.  .Vrabim  region  called  by  them,  archaistically, 
Asshur  or  Ashhur. 


PSALM    LXXXIII. 


43 


among  the  confederate  peoples  to 
Moab  and  Amnion.  Pele[she]th,  how- 
ever, or  Zarephath,  is  a  common 
designation  in  the  psahiis  for  the  N. 
Arabian  foe  of  the  Jews.  See  crit. 
note. 

17  f.  The  poet  is  acc|uainted  with 
the  contents  of  Judg.  iv. — 21  f.  Oreb, 
&c.     See  Judg.  vii.  25,  viii.  4  ft". 

23  f.  Parallel  passage,  Ixxiv.  S. — 
25  f.  Cp.  XXXV.  5,  Isa.  xvii.  13. 

25-36.  Perplexity  has  been  caused 
by  the  apparent  inconsistency  between 
different  expressions  in  the  traditional 
text  of  vv.  14-19.  How  can  the 
psalmist  utter  the  hope,  first  that  the 
enemy  may  (as  though  converted  to 
the  true  fsiith)  seek  the  name  of  Yahwe 
{i.e.  apply  to  be  admitted  to  the  wor- 
ship of  Vahwe),  and  next  that  they 
may  be  put  to  a  perpetual  shame, 
and  even  cease  to  exist,  and,  after  this, 


that  they  may  become  convinced  that 
the  God  of  the  Jews  is  tlie  Lord  of  the 
wiiole  earth  ?  Ilengstenberg  tliinks 
that  '  seeking  \'ahwe's  name '  means 
the  forced  subjection  of  those  who,  like 
Pharaoh,  are  not  able  any  longer  to 
hold  out  against  the  intlictions  ol  Ood. 
Hu]ifeld-Nowack  apparently  hold  that 
the  utter  destruction  of  the  foe  may  be 
prevented  by  a  timely  recognition  of 
Vaiiwc's  supremacy.     Duhm  prefers  to 

alter  "Iti'p2^  into  l]/"!^  ,  on  the  theory 
tliat  V.  I9«  is  in  part  a  variant  to 
''.  17/',  and  gives  the  l)etter  text.  The 
view  here  adopted  agrees  wiih  that 
which  we  have  taken  in  dealing  with 
xviii.  45  ff..  xlvi.  12,  lix.  14.  Some  of 
the  enemies  will  no  doul)t  perish,  but  a 
remnant  will  save  their  lives  by  sul)- 
mitting  to  Yahwe  (cjx  ii.  10-12,  Isa. 
Ixvi.  19). 

29.     Note    the    recovered    parallel 
in  Ps.  ii.,  /.  10. 


Critical  Notes.      5    f.     1*10    1!2''1i^''.    'they    hold    crafty    discourse 

(Driver)?     Construction  as  in  Iv.  15,  no  pTIDJ  (but  see  crit.  note).     It 

is  strange,  however,  that  the  '  uproar '  and  the  proud  self-consciousness, 

spoken  of  in  v.  3,  should  lead  up  to  a  session  of  crafty  plotters  ;  we  need 

something  stronger  than  HD  "lyv     Besides,  the    consultation  comes  in 

v.da.     Read  probably  T\'q   KP^T  (^P-  -  I^-  -^i-  8,  15).     Cp.  on  ii.  2.— M 

^layri".     Read  12-iiTI"'  ;  cp.  ii.  2.— M  T^13i;,'thy  hidden  (/>.  protected) 

-:t  :  •  .       :  -  :  •  '  v       : 

ones';  cp.  xxvii.   5,   xxxi.   21.     J,  however,    'arcanum    tuum.'     But   this 

does  not  suit  the  parallel,  '  thy  people.'      Nor  could  it  be  said  that  the 

enemy  persecutes   Israel  as   '  Yahwe's   protected   ones  ^ ;    Israel    indeed 

knows  himself  protected,  but  the  enemy  deems  Yahwe  to  be  practically 

nonexistent,   and   cries,   'Where   is  thy    God?'      What   we    require    is 

evidently  '^''JVQi^.  cp.  Ixxii.  4,  Isa.  iii.  13,  xiv.  32. 

9.     M  Tin^   ':t>  •     01.,  Dv.,  Bi.,  Che.",   Now.,   Kau.,    Du.,  ini^  l"? 

T  :  -         •■  '  T  V     .    •• 

(i  Chr.  xii.  38).  If  so,  transfer  T  to  /.  10.  But,  apart  from  the  question 
of  the  text  of  i  Chr.  xii.  38,  we  may  fairly  doubt  whether  "inj^  ID  is  the 
original  reading  here.  Why  should  the  unanimity  of  the  debaters  be 
specially  emphasized?  Hence  presumably  Haldvy  reads  (for  "2^7)  D/3  • 
But  metre  requires  us  to  claim  "nn"'  3*?  for  /.  10.  It  is  possible  and 
appropriate  to  read  DvNl^ni'  ;  cp.  similar  errors  in  Ixxiii.  i.  Ixxvi.  6> 
xciv.  15,  Jer.  Ii.  i  (Leb-karnai). 

1 1  f .  M  inserts  ^'7^^<,  which  is  unsuitable,  and,  as  in  many  ||  cases 
{c.i:;.  I  Chr.  iv.  41),  represents  ';?Nrjm\  a  correction  of  lin*  zt>  ■  To 
render  >SlhJ  '  families '  is  needless  audacity.  Before  2i^1D  insert  Di?  •, 
which  fell  out  after  □> — . 


44  THI-:    PSALMS. 

14  f-  M  Dr':'3--1"li;-  Cp.  on  Ixwvii.  4.  For  l")^  read  ~niiO ; 
Lagaide,  1^2  or  illji^ .  't'S  represents  TIBTi  .  See  exeg.  note. — 
"lllfifh?  •     Lagarde.  needlessly,  IW-i  (cp.  on  2  S.  ii.  9). 

16.  M  l^')b"'22b  ■  -More  suitably  (see  exeg.  note)  jn':'3"'*j;3'?  .  Cp. 
hi.,  /.  7,  where  Id'^S  =  j~l':'3  =  j~l3")i: . 

1 7-  ri/D  «Tt  tlie  end  of?'.  9  comes  from  D'^'?^<  ,  which  should  open 
T'.  10.     Omit  ^nD2  (Du.).     For  Midian,  see  v.  12. 

19.  M  ■^^j"^~Vy21 .  See  the  full  treatment  of  this  passage  in  £";/t". 
/)//'..' Endor.'    ~lin"i^J<21  is  an  inadeciuate  correction.    Read  Tl^  V^^^- 

21-24.  ir23''"T3  V2r\'^''V  is  clearly  wrong.  It  is  a  weak  remedy  to 
omit  the  V2  in  r.D/TZ'  (so  Hu.-Xow.),  or  even  li^D^HJ  (Du.).  The  latter 
course  in\olves  bringing  VJD^DJ"'?^  into  /.  23,  and  12'?~rTlt'~l^J  into  /.  24, 
and  so  putting  a  great  strain  on  the  metre.  Two  other  words  besides 
"TJ  'li^  must  also  be  wrong,  viz.  ")DD*DJ  and  jmK.3-  It  was  surely  not 
only  the  'princes'  who  uttered  injurious  words  against  Yahwe  (see  Ixxiv. 
8,  where  the  subject  of  the  verb  is  'thine  adversaries');  and  it  is  very 
doubtful  whether  j~)")Si  could  be  used  of  Yahwe's  sanctuaries.  The 
parallelism  of  Ixxiv.  8  suggests  that  VOD^DJ~t'D  represents  a  phrase 
meaning  '  all  the  dwellings  (of).'  It  is  now  easy  and  safe  to  read  "7^ 
/TlJDIi'r.3  ('fD'2  is  a  word  specially  liable  to  corruption),  which  is  no  doubt 
an  early  correction  of  msj  .  IiDH^IJ  >  a  reading  due  to  the  influence  of 
the  corrupt  V.2D''D2  ,  ought  to  have  sprung  out  of  some  verb  (with  plur. 
sufit".).  ir07T"Z7  and  IDQ^IJ  must,  therefore,  be  emended  so  as  to  be 
parallel.  The  best  corrections  appear  to  be  l!!3/l*nti^D  and  V0T3Nn  . 
To  this  Duhm  may  object  that  yj:^'?^^!  requires  two  beats.  But  ^^ot'^ 
is  a  wrong  reading,  which  it  is  not  certain  that  the  true  text  of  G  favours 
(R*  has  (Tu\fiat>),  and  which  at  any  rate  we  may  without  rashness  emend 
to  y^iblV  (see  Efw.  Dib.y  'Shalman,'  'Zalmunna'). 

31-34.  The  transpositions  and  textual  changes  seem  to  justify  them- 
selves (cp.  exeg.  note).  In  v.  iS  "Ti?"''"!]?  is  evidently  wrong.  The  right 
adverb  to  be  attached  to  imprecations  like  that  in  %>.  iZa  is  surely  "TH^  or 
'nXV  (cp.  xl.  15),  which,  therefore,  should  be  substituted  for  ny .  V.  \'?>b 
appears  in  M  (G)  as  ^■T3^<^^  1"13n^1  •  On  the  grounds  mentioned  in 
exeg.  note  we  should  hesitate  to  adopt  this  reading,  which  not  improbably 
arose  througli  editorial  manipulation  of  ']TT33^"'1  ^3~1^  (cp.  xivi.  12). 


PS.\LM    LXXXIV. 

l.N  symmetry  of  form  this  reminds  us  of  P.s.  xlii.-xliii.  ;  each  of  the  two  strophes 
consists  of  six  pentameters  together  witli  a  refrain  of  two  more.  The  view  taken 
of  the  meaning  of  tlie  psalm  depends  of  course  on  the  reading  of  the  text,  which 
is  mucli  disputed.  The  points  of  contact  wiih  Ps.  xlii.-xliii.  which  even  the  re- 
ceived text  presents,  sugf^est   that  in  emending  the  text  we  should  use  that  psalm 


PSALM    LXXXIV.  45 

as  a  guide.  Both  psalms  appear  to  have  been  written  for  pious  Jews  (not 
necessarily  those  of  the  Diaspora)  who,  in  tryint;  times,  were  prevented  from  re- 
sorting to  the  temjile.  In  other  words,  the  historical  setting  is  probably  imaginary  ; 
the  writer  assumes  the  position  of  Jewish  exiles  in  X.  Arabia  who  were  unable 
to  join  their  brethren  in  Palestine.  The  '  I '  who  speaks  is  a  personification  of  a 
company.  Detained  in  'Jerahmeel'  (see  introd.  to  Ps.  xlii.-xliii. ),  they  cry  for 
help  to  Vahwe  ;  it  is  a  cry  of  pain,  like  that  of  the  thirsty  hind  (xlii.  2).  With 
the  N.  Arabians  they  have  no  sympathy.  Zarephath  and  Jerahmeel  (both  names 
are  archaistic)  reject  the  house  of  \'ahwe,  but  the  altars  of  A'ahwe  are  to  Israel  the 
most  sacred  objects.  To  dwell  beside  them  is  true  happiness  ;  even  to  be  on  the 
road  to  Jerusalem  opens  in  the  heart  a  well-spring  of  praise.  For  those  fortunate 
exiles  wlio  have  started  on  the  homeward  journey  God  will  so  transform  the  barren 
places  in  tlieir  way  that  the)-  will  tirink,  or  seem  to  drink,  of  fountains  and  rivers. 
At  present  indeed  they  pine  with  regret  and  cry  out  in  pain.  But  their  faith  con- 
soles them,  for  Vahwe  is  ever  true  to  his  lovingkindness  and  fa'thfulness.  Israel's 
life  is  blameless,  and  a  recompense  is  sure.  Happy,  then,  are  those  who  dwell  in, 
and  hapjiy  too  are  those  who  journey  to,  the  true  home  of  the  heart.  Cp.  also 
Ps.  Ixiii.") — An  insertion  (  =  77'.  9-I1)  was  made  in  the  second  strophe  by  the 
editor.  It  is  apparently  a  fragment  of  another  psalm,  and  is  in  trimeters.  The 
time  referred  to  may  lie  the  same  as  in  Isa.  Ixiii.  18  ;  cp.  also  Ps.  Ixxiv. 

On  the  textual  criticism,  besides  the  commentaries  (see  especially  Olshausen). 
cp.  van  Gilse,  Tlieol.  Tijdsclir.  1896,  pp.  455-468  (he  supposes  77'.  6-10  to  be  a 
later  insertion).  For  the  present  writer's  earlier  view,  see  /'sM\  and  cp.  0/\ 
119  f.,  132  (note^/),  479. 

Deposited.     0/ the  Is/iiiiaelites{}).   Of  the  sons  of  KoraJi.     Marked,  i 

I     From    Jerahmeel-ciishani    I   call    upon    thee,  |  O    Yahwe 

Sebaoth  !  2 

*         *         * 

My  soul  longs,  3'ea  pines,  |  for  Yahwe's  courts,  3 

My  heart  and  my  body  cry  in  pain  |  to  the  God  of  my 
life. 

Though   Zarephath    reject   thy    house,  |  and    the   race   of 

Jerahmeel,  4 

Thine  altars  do  I  choose,  |  O  my  king  and  my  God  ! 

Happy  are  those  that  dwell  in  th}-  house,  |  that  praise  thee 
evermore  !  5 

Happy  are  those  that  journey  to  thine  altars,  |  in  whose 
heart  are  songs  of  praise  !  b 


Passing    in   the  midst  of  plains  1  they  will  drink   from  a 
fountain, 
10  Even  in  the  deserts      *     ]  he  will  set  streams. 

The)'  pine  [in  the  *    of]  Jerahmeel  |  for  the  God  of  their 

life. 
They  cry  in  pain  to  the  God  of  gods  |  [who   dwelleth  (?)] 

in  Zion. 


/ 


46 


THE    PSALMS. 


For  lovingkiiidness  and  faithfulness  are  dear  [  to  Yahwe 
our  shield  ;  i~ 

Favour  and  glory'  he  will  not  withhold]  -  |  from  the  blame- 
less in  life. 


[Happy  are    those   that  dwell   in  thy  house,  |  that  praise 

thee  evermore  !] 
Happy  are  those  that  journey  to  thine   altars,  |  O  Yahwe 

Sebaoth  ! 

Inserted  passage. 

O  Yahwe,"  hear  my  prayer  ; 
Hearken,  O  God  of  Jacob  ! 
Behold,  O  God,  the  Kenizzites, 
And  look  upon  the  sons  of  Cusham  ! 
For  they  trample  '  upon  thy  courts, — 
Zarephath  and  the  house  of  Jerahmeel.^ 


n 


lO 


II 


I.  Cp.  Ixi.,  /.  3,  Ixxvii.f'',  //.  I-3-— 
4.  'My  heart  and  mv  body .  Cp.  xvi.  9, 
Ixiii.  2,  and  ('the  God  of  my  life  ')  xlii. 
3. — 5.  D^l  refers  to  the  whole   clause. 

That  uppor,  '  bird,'  should  rather  be 
sarcphath  is  highly  probable.  If  we 
adhere  to  the  received  text,  we  must 
interpret  thus  (filling  up  a  supposed 
defective  portion),  '  Birds  fail  not  to 
find  places  to  build  their  nests  in,  but  I, 
less  happy,  am  far  from  the  home  ot 
my  heart.'  The  ordinary  interpretation, 
however,  is, '  If  even  birds  love  to  build 
their  nests  in  the  sacred  precincts,  how 
rriuch  more  reason  has  the  believing 
heart  to  find  its  home  in  the  house  ot 
its  C'lOil.'  But  the  words  "jli^ 
"]\~nn2T^3  obstinately  refuse  to  be 
brought  into  relation  to  the  birds.  It 
it  is  true  that  trees  were  planted  in  the 
outer  court  of  the  temple,  we  might 
suppose  the  birds  to  have  built  there 
witli  impunity;  but  surely  this  was  not 
possible  in  llie  tem]ilc  proper  (cji.  Jos. 
B.y.,  V.  5,6).  But  were  trees  planted  in 
the  precincts  of  the  tem|)le  ?  This  is  an 
unproved  assertion  (see  on  Hi.  10,  xcii. 
14).  The  ))assage  is  evidently  corrupt 
(see  crit.  n.),  and  the  interesting  state- 
ments of  Robertson  Smith  {Kel.  SmtS-  , 
225)  throw  no  real  light  upon  it.  DNO 
and  "in3  represent  respectively  the 
initiation  and  the  severance  or  repudia- 


tion of  a  mystic  religious  bond  such  as 
that  between  Yahwe  and  his  people. 
The  same  antithesis  in  xli.  9. 

7.  The  temple  is  regarded  as  the 
house  of  praise  ;  cp.  xxii.  4  (?),  cxi.  I, 
Isa.  Ixiv.  II. — 8.  To  thine  altar.  Cp. 
xliii.  4. — In  whose  heart,  &c.  Songs  of 
praise  are  stored  up  in  the  heart  of  the 
jiilgrim,  ready  to  find  utterance  as  soon 
as  he  stands  within  the  temple-gates. 

9  f.  Old  prophecies  receive  new  ap- 
plications. Cp.  on  Isa.  xli.  iS,  xlviii. 
21.  The  riddle  of  the  Baca-trees  seems 
to  have  arisen  out  of  corruption  of  the 

text.  Granting  the  correctness  of  J^D^, 
it  was  natural  to  see  a  play  on  the  root- 
meaning  of  SD^  ,  '  to  weep  '  ;  cp. 
Ges.  Thes.,  '  D'NDQ,  arbor  quiddam  a 
/acri/nando  dicla..'     But  see  crit.  note. 

II  f.  Cp.  on  7>v.  3  f.  God  of  ^s^ods, 
as  in  1.  I  (?),  Josh.  xxii.  22,  cp.  Dan. 
xi.  36. 

13.  See  crit.  note.  ^DH  and 
TirON  as  in  Ixxxv.  11  f.,  xlii. -xliii.,  //. 
7,  20,  28.  —  Our  shield,  as  xxxiii.  20 
(lix.  12  and  Ixxxix.  19  are  corrupt) ; 
cp.  iii.  4,  xviii.  3,31,36,  xxviii.  7,  &c. 

Insertion.     5  f,    Cp.  Isa.  Ixiii.  1 8. 


'  Yahwe  gives. 


3  Good.  ■''  Elohim.     Sebaoth. 

*  Missur,  Jerahmeel,  Asshur. 


Jerahmeel. 


PSALM    LXXXIV. 


47 


Critical  Notes,  i.  M  Tj^Jlij3ii^Q  J-|il>T~n^  .  One  of  the  numcroLis 
cases  in  which  apparent  simplicity  does  not  exclude  corruption.  To 
produce  a  connected  view  of  the  meaning  of  the  psalm  it  is  presumable 
that  the  opening  words  express  the  longing  of  a  captive  to  be  free.  In 
xlv.  I  jmn^  is  a  corruption  of  p/T*"!^  (on  which  see  Introd.).  Here, 
however,  it  seems  to  be  corrupted  from  jI'Q^I^  ,  i.e.  t'Nl^nT-  The  next 
word  'JtC^D  is  probably  made  up  of  Tj"'j~i}^"1p  "[ii^'O  ,  where  ']iiy'0  ,  as  in 
cxx.  5  and  constantly  (see  .£"//r.  jff/^.,  '  Tubal '  and  '  Meshech '),  is  a  dis- 
tortion of  UV3  ■  '  Jerahmecl-cusham '  is  as  natural  a  compound  as 
'  Cusham-jerahmeel.'     Cp.  £/2e.  Bib.,  'Tower  of  Shechem.' 

4-  j\I  '1J3"1^.  This  produces  no  parallelism  ;  nor  can  heart  and  body 
very  well  be  said  either  to  'shout  for  joy  '  or  '  to  wail '  (cp.  nj"1 ,  xvii.  i). 

T    . 

Gr.,  Hal.,  liny  ;  rather  ^ll'j)"'  (see  on  xlii.  2).     Easier,  but  less  forcible, 

would  \)&^.'^'^'',  Aramaicc  (in  T   xlii.  2  =  ;)"ip  ;   in   Ixxxiv.  3  =  =]DDi)- — 

Read  ^'^H   7^7  ;  see  on  xlii.  3. 
T-       ••  : 

5.     M  '1J1  ~li3i:"D3  •    That  this  does  not  cohere  with  IMinaT/'D'jli^ 

is   clear   (see  exeg.  note).      Next,  as    to  .M's  n^illSM  HJlIi'  ~lli'j<  (ou 

TV      :  V         T  T.        V  -: 
Q'nuii  Tu  voaain  nvrrji).     The  objections  to  this  are  (i)  that  it  destroys 

the   symmetry  of  the   stanza,    and    (2)    that  a   reference   to   the  young 

nestlings  is  out  of  place  here.     It  is   God  who   tends  his  own,  like  the 

mother-eagle  (Dt.  xxxii.   1 1  f.)  ;  God,  who  places  the  Levites  in  a  house 

where  they  can  'ever  praise'  Him.     In  another  context  this  could  fitly  be 

said.     But  when  a  psalmist  compares  a  band  of  pilgrims  to  a  bird,  we 

feel  that  to  bring  in  the  young  ones  of  the  nest  obscures  and  mars  the 

poetical  beauty.     We  have  a  right  to  expect  something  like  xlii.  3/-',  xliii. 

4^.     It  will  be  noticed  that  there  are  two  Paseks  in  M's  text.     Here,  as 

elsewhere,  we  cannot  be  sure  that  they  are  placed  with  perfect  accuracy  ; 

misplacements  would  easily  happen.   But  so  much  at  least  we  may  infer — 

that  in  early  times  the  proposed  reading  of  the  text  was  felt  to  be  doubtful, 

n[l]3^  for  j~l3"1ii  is  a  not  uncommon  error  ;  cp.  E/ie.  Bib.,  '  Zippor,'  and 

note  that  ~1DD  J~inp  probably  comes  from  [DjDliJ  'p  •     For  iV2i  Hk^J^D 

read  possibly  '^T^^H  CJ^i^/-  ^'^'^  '^^^  ^.    P   "'''"n.')  read  t'^<;2"^^'  ^HP 

(cp.  xlii -xliii., //.  14,24).     T^TW    IIi)^<,  prosaic  and  unmctrical.    Probably 

T  T        .V  -: 
from   j13"1^  ,  originally  a  correction    of   ms^  •     '3J^    iTiay   come   from 

"r^in:! .     /IINQ^'  '■'  is  a  gloss  on  ''^'?^<"l  Oba  .     [For  other  attempts  to 

deal  with  this  passage  see  Bickell,  Che  '",  and  Duhm.     The  two  former 

suppose  words  to  have  dropped  out  before  'TQ"j"1J<  ;  the  latter  transfers 

those  words  to  a  stanza  produced  by  the  union  of  v.  2,b  and  7'.  4^,  which 

is  followed  by  a  stanza  consisting  oi  v.  4a  ;  he  reads  ")i"n  /T^-] 

7.  At  the  end  of  7'.  5  M  gives  n'?D  (G  5t(i\//-«X/Lto).  This  comes  from 
wbTV  dittographed.    See  on  Ixviii.'^',  //,  9  f.,1xviii.(-',  /.  2,2)- 

8.  M  TT^'i'!'  ("ly  DTJ<  .      For  D7^^  (a  word  which  is  often  wrongly 

' T  TT  TT 


48  THE    PSALMS. 

read)  we  require  some  participle  which  can  be  1  to  ''2V''  in  /.  7.  It  is 
l)oth  possible  and  suitable  to  read  I'miinirj'?  QTini^  ''~)lUii  (or 
in^o':').— M  ni'pD'J.  'highways'?  Neither  Hupfeld's  rvhD3  ,  'C- 
'  confidence'  ?  nor  D)'?^^  (Ba.,  We.,  l)u.  ;  G  aual3ii<r(is),  i.e.  '  pilgrimages,' 
produces  a  natural  sense,  or  a  suitable   parallel  to  "]v'?n''  (/•  ?)•     Read 

Ts'bTMrs ;  cp.  on  rhx) ,  /.  7- 

9  f.  M  SDnn  pr21*2  niy  (Pasek  after  'y).  Duhm  retains  the 
'  Baka-vallcy.'  but  recognizes  that  the  text  of  ?-.  7  is  '  not  altogether  in 
order.'  Hut  ought  not  this  fact  to  make  us  distrust  the  enigmatical 
phrase  h?D2n  pQy  ?  The  ancients  with  one  voice  explain  '  the  valley 
of  weeping.'  and  the  Massora  remarks  that  J<  stands  for  n.  which  indeed 
a  icw  MSS.  read.  Most  moderns,  however,  render  '  the  valley  of  baca- 
trees  '  (cp.  2  S.  v.  23  f.,  i  Chr.  xiv.  14  f.),  and  since  G  gives  (cXai-^/^ic'i/.  not 
only  here,  but  in  Judg.  ii.  r  (where  M  has  DOJl),  we  might  be  tempted 
to  read  D''J^D2in  ,  so  that  the  \'alley  (Plain)  of  Rephaim.  usually  placed 
near  Jerusalem,  might  be  meant.  But  it  is  extremely  difficult  to  identify 
the  •  baca  trees '  botanically,  and  the  question  arises  whether  both  Q^h^DQ 
in  2  S.,  I  Chr.,  and  ^{D^  in  our  psalm  are  not  corrupt.  See  Enc.  Bib., 
'  Mulberry.'  In  the  present  passage  we  should  probably  read  ^iJH^ 
j"lij7p3  •  The  misreading  pi^^j;  was  produced  by  the  pro.ximity  of  ^<D2• 
Cp.  Isa.  xli.  18.— M  inn^i:^''  VyD.  G  presupposes  inn"'lt^';  (so  Kt.), 
which  We.,  Du.  adopt.  Some  MSS.  imn^V  'bibunt  eum';  so  Michaelis 
and    Halevy  .       Read    probably   '^TW'^    ]^1/Q!3      (Herz,     independently, 

:  •     t:  - 

10.  M    n"^i^3    ntS^''   /liD"131"D3,  which  J  renders  '  benedictionem 

Cjuoque  amicietur  doctor'  I    Clearly  impossible  ;  but  JllDn^  ,  '  reservoirs' 

(Derenb..  Hal.,  Duhm),  is  no  improvement.     mDH^  was  made  up  by  an 

editor  out  of  fragments  of  Jli^inil  (Isa.  .\lviii.  21).     P'or  mi*.3  niDl" 

tt:t 
read  DHnj    D^Ii'^  (cp.  xliii.  19)  ;  I>  and  itj .  10  and  Jl  confounded. 
•  T  :  .T  ^ 

11.  M  >n"'?S  '?''nr^  '^zh\  whether  '7-n  means  '  strength  '  (':)''n), 
or  ' rampart,  7r/jo7-€i;^io-/itt  (/TT),  the  sense  produced  does  not  suit  the 
|)arallel  line.  Some  part  of  the  passage  ought  to  contain  a  parallel  to 
Q^il/hi  in  the  next  line,  and  Griitz  acutely  conjectures  t'}^  h'yrh  o'?^ 
*n  .  This,  however,  is  not  only  weak  in  itself,  but  insufficient  for  the 
long  line  which  the  metre  requires.  It  must  be  confessed  that  the  next 
line  in  the  received  text  is  liable  to  the  same  objections.  But  we  are 
freer  in  dealing  with  v.  Za  than  with  7'.  8/',  because  ]V^*3  D^"^'7^}  {'<'.  8/>) 
is  self-evidcntly  right,  and  this  determines  the  general  sense  of?'.  8a.  It 
appears  probable  (more   cannot  be  said)    that    lines    ii,    12  correspond 


PSALM    LXXXIV.  49 

to  lines  3,  4,  and  that  I.   w    should  run  — '^.v}':'    '^J^'^PI'T'    [  *   3]     ^'^ri^ 

12.  IVI  ]V:i^  Q''rt^J^"'?iV}  ^^^'^V  O  S  'a,  however,  presuppose 
D^n'^J^  t'J^  ,  which  Gr.,  Du.  rightly  adopt.  But  this  is  surely  insufficient. 
To  satisfy  metre,  let  us,  with  Bickell  (doubtfully),  read  '^Zl  [Uli^^]  ;  Du. 
is  content  to  insert  m^^     It  remains  to  deal  with    ^^^^"^^     It   is   too 

V   T" 

slight  an  improvement  to  read  ^^^'T'^  ('  that  they  may  sec  '  ;  Duhni).  In 
accordance  with  the  preceding  note  one  may  suggest  D\l'?S  bl^?  inj.'J' 
'11  'yD"  •  For  nj;;i  see  on  v.  4.  After  y  had  dropped  out,  it  was 
natural  that  ~1J'  should  become  ^i■^ . 

13  f.  M  Wrb"^  '"•  P'^T  ^'.pr  ""B  (Pasck  after  "it').  Nowhere,  how- 
ever, is  Yahwe  directly  called  'sun ';  the  expression  may  have  seemed  to 
the  O.T.  writers  equivocal.  If  "^  is  correct,  it  surely  ought  to  mean 
'  battlement '  (cp.  TsyOtyt) ,  Isa.  liv.  12);  so  Derenbourg  {REJ,\\.  163), 
Gr.,  Ba.,  Du.  Still,  even  this  is  not  quite  satisfactory',  and  Pasek  warns 
us  to  be  cautious.  Is.  Loeb  arbitrarily  reads  piV'p  ;  but  G  has  on  eXeoi/ 
Ka\  akrjOeiav  CiyaTia.  Ki'pios  6  6e6s,  which  suggests  Il^^i  n'^NI  "TDH  O 
mn'' ,  ?>•  tl'i^Dli;  has  arisen  out  of  Dt^ii  .  p!2'l  seems  to  have  come  out 
of  ^2^T2  ,  which  should  stand  after  nTT'  (rather  than  D\l'7N)-     Omit 

•••  T 

'^   ]J^^  and  nijOi  disturbing  insertions  of  a  scribe. 

15  f.  Complete  the  refrain.  In  /.  16  Ql^^  should  be  DTniji  (/•  8). 
■?f^   niOil  comes  from  ']nn^/'^ ,  a  fragmentary  form  of  "]^rin2TD'7  i^-  8). 

Insertion.  n'?D  (7'.  9.  end)  may  come  either  from  Q"'^7^i,  or  from 
t'^i(!D^T  (marginal  note).  In  /.  i  omit  D'^^'?^<  .  a  variant  to  n"in\  and 
also  either  jnSlj;  or  T1'73j~|  (metre).  In  /.  3  ^JiHD  cannot  be  right- 
'Shield'  cannot  possibly  be  a  synonym  for '  prince  '  (assuming  provisionally 
that  'in^ti'l^  in  v.  \ob  is  correct),  while  if  used  metaphorically  as  a  title 
of  God  it  ought  to  stand  after  D\~l'?i^  ■  In  two  other  passages  (lix.  12 
and  Ixxxix.  19)  1JJJD  is  certainly  corrupt.  Surely  it  must  also  be  so 
here.  In  Ezek.  xxiii.  24,  xxvii.  10,  xxxviii.  4  f.,  xxxix.  9,  \y^  appears  to 
represent  TJp  (see  OvV.  Bib).  In  this  context  '\y^T^  probably  represents 
QHJpOJ=<2).  For  Trrfl^JD  ""JQ  read  Dli;0  ^IH-  So  a  poor  verse  is 
Strengthened.  Out  of  v.  1 1  (awkwardly  long)  we  have  to  extract  the 
material  for  //.  5.  6.  The  words  in  M  which  are  most  clearly  wrong  arc 
5^'?^i^J,  Minn,  =131j*1DrT.  and  -niQ.  Nor  must  we  underrate  the 
difficulty  of  connecting  v.  11  with  v.  10.  To  remedy  the  first  two 
difficulties  Bickell  and  Duhm  would  emend  ^Din^  into  yiH^  -  thus 
producing  the  sense  '  a  day  in  thy  courts  is  better  than  a  thousand 
(spent)  abroad.'  But  the  emendation  is  too  violent.  5)31ilDrT ,  '  to 
busy  oneself  with  the  threshold'?  But  why  not  ^T^  ib'^.^'^  ?  And  if 
"ITT  in  ")TT^  means  '  to  sojourn,' how  are  the  two  words  parallel?  As  to 
II.  E 


50  THE    PSALMS. 

"m  great  doubt  exists.  Nowlicre  else  in  llie  O.T.  is  this  Aramaic  verb 
found.  Pcrles  (Anal.,  76)  conjectures  that  it  is  a  late  correction  for  the 
Heb.  -)?i:i  ;  cp.  xv.  i,  "j'^HN^  ^^^y'  \r)  •  But  why  should  -\^^  be  cor- 
rected just  here.''  To  evade  the  last-mentioned  difficulty  Bickell  and 
Duhm  would  give  ?/.  11  a  fresh  place,  the  former  after  ?'.  3,  the  latter 
after  -,•.  8.  It  is  clear,  however,  that  some  keen  textual  criticism  is 
necessary.  The  prosaic  MinZl  is  a  fragment  of  [^]\T11fn2  ;  so  also, 
most  probably,  is  3113  =  '/Tniina  •  ^"^ii^  comes  from  '?i<r2m' .  a 
marginal  note  ;  cp.  the  corrupt  place-names  Ha-eleph  (Josh,  xviii.  28), 
Irpeel  (Josh,  xviii.  27).  'DDn  is  a  corruption  and  expansion  of  J13"l^ 
(1  from  "1 ,  D  fiom  ji).  TllD  comes  from  l^iJQ .  Let  us  now  fill  up  the 
gaps.  D1^  must  represent  a  verb  ;  the  subject  is  the  N.  Arabian 
oppressor.  1DI2T'  seems  to  be  the  verb  required;  cp.  SBOT  on  Isa. 
Ixiii.  18.  ^rh'ik  n'2^  =  b'ikr2'n-\''  n^y\;  D*^'^^<  for  'HT  is  not  un- 
common. 3,»I:;T■'':5^T^<2  comes  from  ■)r^:r^<  '^hJ^irn"'  ;  Missur,  Jerahmeel, 
and  Asshur  (Ashhur)  are  a  scribe's  insertion,  as  an  amplification  of 
'Zarephath  and  the  house  of  Jerahmeel.' 


PSALM  LXXXV. 

1  RIMETERS.  A  prayer  for  Messianic  deliverance,  which  is  described,  in  the 
spirit  of  Ezekiel  (xxxvii.)  and  a  later  eschatologicai  description  (Isa.  xxvii.  17  ft'.), 
as  a  restoration  to  life.  There  is  here  no  passionate  complaint  of  present  misery, 
but  an  importunate  pleading  for  speedy  restoration.  The  opening  stanza  (with 
its  perfects)  has  even  variously  interpreted,  i.  Is  it  a  retrospect  of  the  mercies 
of  the  first  century  after  the  fall  of  Babylon,  reflected  through  an  idealistic 
medium?  This  isconceivalile  if  we  put  tlie  psalm  late  enough  for  idealization  to 
have  taken  place  (cp.  cxxvi.).  But  the  transition  to  the  melancholy  present  in  the 
second  stanza  is,  on  this  hypothesis,  extremely  abrupt,  and  the  poet  has  even  made 
this  more  painful  liy  using  the  same  verb  '2^\D  to  express  the  divine  mercy  in  both 
stanzas,  and  by  distinctly  stating  (as  Kimhi  has  pointed  out)  that  the  divine  anger 
has  never  had  pause  or  remission  (7'.  6).  2.  Are  the  perfects  in  //.  1-6  '  prophetic,' 
i.e.  does  the  poet  open  his  poem  with  a  prophetic  vision  of  the  future,  and  then 
pass  on  to  a  prayer  for  its  realization?  This  is  Smend's  view  (p.  86,  note).  3.  Are 
the  perfects  precative  (see  on  x.  16)  ?  The  jirecative  perfect  expresses  the  energetic 
movement  of  tlie  will  towards  the  object  desired  ;  the  speakers  wrestle,  like  Jacob, 
with  their  God.  AVhen  it  is  let^itimate  to  suppose  the  precative  perfect — which  is 
closely  akin  to  the  prophetic — it  is  in  the  interests  of  intelligibility  to  do  so.  In 
Ixxxv.  *"  it  ts  possible  to  do  so. 

I's.  Ixxxv.  -'  is  also  in  trimeters.  As  the  text  stands,  the  community  personified  re- 
ports a  revelation  which  it  has  just  now  received,  to  the  eft'ect  that  the  Messianic 
prophecies  are  about  to  be  fulfilled.  Originally,  however,  the  opening  stanza 
referred,  not  to  righteous  Israel,  but  to  guilty  Jerahmeel  ;  the  prophecy  contained  in 
it  seems  to  be  based  on  Zech.  ix.  10.  Tiie  second  stanza,  in  like  manner,  is  de- 
pendent on  that  fine  jirophetic  passage,  Isa.  xlv.  S,  and  the  third  on  Isa.  Iviii.  8. 
The  editor  of  the  precetling  poem  ought  to  counteract  its  melancholy  by  some 
gracious  and  soul-reviving  j)romises,  taking  care,  however,  to  rewrite  the  two 
opening  lines  relative  to  the  foes  of  the  past. 

Deposited.     Of  the  sons  oj  Kora/i.     Marked. 

I         Oh  that  thou  wouldcst  become  gracious  to  thy  land,  2 

Wouldcst  restore  Jacob  to  life, 


PSALM    LXXXV.  51 

Wouldest  take  away  the  guilt  of  thy  people, 

Wouldest  cancel  all  their  sin,i 

Wouldest  withdraw  all  thy  fury,  4 

Wouldest  restrain  thy  hot  anger  ! 

Restore  us  +to  life,+  O  God  our  deliverer,  5 

And  turn  aside  thine  indignation  at  us ! 

Wilt  thou  be  perpetually  angry  with  us  ?  6 

10       Wilt  thou  prolong  thy  wrath  for  all  time  ? 

Wilt  thou  not  now  restore  us  to  life,  7 

That  thy  people  may  rejoice  in  thee  ? 

Make  us,  O  Yahwe,  to  enjoy  thy  lovingkindness,  8 

And  grant  us  thy  deliverance  I- 

uxxxv.- 

I         Yahwe  will  bring  down  those  of  Ishmael,  9 

Will  bring  down  Ishmael  and  Jerahmeel  ; 
His  deliverance  is  near  for  those  that  fear  him,  10 

That  his  glory  may  abide  in  our  land. 

Lovingkindness  and  faithfulness  meet,  1 1 

Righteousness  and  welfare  join  together  ; 
Faithfulness  springs  out  of  the  earth,  12 

Lovingkindness  looks  down  from  heaven. 

Yahwe  also  will  give  generously,  13 

10       And  our  land  will  yield  its  increase. 

Righteousness  will  walk  before  him,  14 

Welfare  will  run  after  his  footsteps. 

Ixxxv.'-'     if.    The  original  text  has  angels  in  human  form  (cp.  Ixi.  8,  Ixxxix. 

been  finely  rewritten.     The  community  14),    which   wander   delightedly  about 

is  introduced  as  a  prophet  (cp.  Ixii.  12,  the  places  of  concourse  (contrast  Isa. 

Ilab.  ii.  i),  who,  in  vv.  10  ft'.,  gives  a  lix.  14  f.).    '  Faithfulness,' by  a  change 

free    reproduction    of    the    revelation  of  figure,  is  also  represented  as  a  plant 

which  he   has   received    (as    Ixii.    12,  (cp.   Isa.    xlv.  8),    for   it  is  God  who 

Ixxxi.  6,  «S:c. ).  enables  Israel  to  be  'faithful.'     From 

4.  His    glory,  i.e.  the  manifested  'righteousness'     (or,     prosperity)     to 

presence  of  Israel's  God.     See  Ix.  i  f.,  ^'^''^^  reasons   is  an  easy   transition. 

and  cp.  Ps.  Ixxxiv.  12.     '  His  deliver-  <-P-  Hos.  11.  23  f.      Increased   fertility 

ance  is  almost  a  synonymous  term  ;  cp.  ^^  "^^  .^o^'   is   a    constant   feature    of 

•       r  descriptions    of    iVIessianic    IjIiss    (cp. 

Am.  IX.  13,  Isa.  xxx.  23  1.). 
5     ff.       Xiovingklndness     and 

faithfulness?    finely   represented    as  u.     Cp.  Isa.  Iviii.  8. 

'  O  God.  -  The  last  four  lines  of  the  stanza  have  perished. 


52  Tin-:    PSALMS. 

Critical  Notes.  Ixxxv.O  z.  Read  probably  3pr  t'^l  -Hnnir . 
Cp.  on  xiv.  7,  Ix.  3  ;  cxxvi.  4.  —  4-  H'^D .  as  often,  comes  from  Dm'pJ* 
(a  gloss). 

6.  M  ni^^'y^'n  ;  Ci  rJ7rt'o-T/)€\//Tis.  An  'inwardly  transitive'  verb 
(Hengst.,  Ba.  ;  comparing  Ezek.xiv.6,xviii.  30)  is  not  natural  here.  Nor 
does~'?D  in  /.  5  allow  us  to  take  p  as  partitive  (Ol.).  The  phrase  is  'hybrid' 
(Hu.),  but  it  is  a  scribe's  fault.  Schradcr  and  Duhm  read  nmi''Ii'rT 
'N  'n  ;  but  another  occurrence  of  IW  would  be  intolerable.  Probably 
n^trr  is  right.  M's  error  may  presuppose  a  still  earlier  error  r^Ilt^'Q 
Ontcrroyative).  which,  in  fact,  Gr.  reads  by  conjecture. 

7  f .  M  ^jnV^.  Read  probably  ^JT^'n  (Ixxx.  4).— M  ISn.  Read 
"IDH  (Cr.,  Bi.rChe.,  Du.). 

••  T 

II.      M    X^^\'^^      Rather    nPV,    'now,    at    length'    (suggested   by 

~)n  "ii'^).    so^Gr.— M  ^TT\r\  iwr\  ■    Rather  innv^'r^ ;  IJ^^nJl  is  a 

gloss.     For  S'^n ,  G,  Ba.,  Now.  read  ':>^}^  (cp.  v.  9),  less  naturally. 

lxxxv.'2)  I  f.  The  difficulties  of  this  passage  in  MT  admit  of  no 
adequate  solution.  Why  '7^^n  beside  m.l''?  And  why  ri-DirbST 
beside  1/2J?~'^i<  ?  And  how  can  a  suspicion  be  expressed  of  the  loyalty  of 
the  Q''l"'Dn?*  Th'D'2  too  is  questionable  (see  on  xlix.  14).  G  gives 
something  quite  different  for  v.  qb  ;  see  liiithgen,  Stitdicn  u.  Kritikefty 
1880,  p.  762.  Evidently  there  was  considerable  doubt  among  the  early 
Jewish  scholars  how  to  read  and  explain  this  passage.  Anyone,  however, 
who  has  followed  the  scribes  in  their  attempts  to  understand  miswritten 
forms  of  ethnics,  or  perhaps  to  get  rid  of  them,  will  not  long  remain  in 
perplexity.     The  key  is  gi\en  by  Zech.  ix.  10,  where  U^b'^  "121^  means 

'?syr:)i:'''  i''"iv  •   nr^  nrroi^^s ,  then,  comes  from  D"''?^ii^:3'^'' ;  bt^7\  is 

a  fragment  of  '^Sl^mV  a  correction  from  the  margin.  ^^.^l'~7^?, 
VTDn"'?hJ,  and  H^DD'?  come  from  "^J^^^m'  (!2  and  D  confounded), 
121Ii/^~'?hi  (in  accordance  with  many  parallels)  from  7Ny!2^"'  • 

4.  M  pi:'^.  T  ]3^  (see  on  Ixxviii,  60).— M  in3  .  Read 
ni23  (^  T),  with  Geiger  (6^r.\77/;-.,  31 8). 

8  f.  M  plJiT .  Read  IDm  (A  5).  For  the  confusion  see  on 
cxliv.  2.— M  2^t3ii .     Read  Hidli  (3  precedes). 

10.  IM  Di^'^T  •  Schrader  {St.  Kr.  '68,  p.  639),  1,'b'i?''').  But  parallelism 
requires  □'^iLh  0)y.,We.,  Du.).  jri:;^1  (Bevan,/.  of  Phil.,  xviii.  ['89],  144, 
and  Smend,  AT Rcl.-gcsc/i.,  419)  is  against  /.  6  ;  ^  sprang  from  b  ■  For 
-^-^ib  read  C)^"l^  (Du.). 


PSALM     LXXXVI.  53 


PSALM    LXXXVI. 

1  RIMETERS.  This  psalm,  like  others,  has  had  a  liistory.  Originally  it  was  a 
psalm  of  persecution,  or  at  any  rate  written  in  imhation  of  psalms  of  ]iersecution  ; 
it  is  gratuitous  to  suppose  that  the  original  writer  mixed  up  supplications  for 
deliverance  with  thanksgiving  for  mercies  received.  The  community,  through  its 
psalmists,  is  the  real  author  both  of  the  psalm  of  supplication  and  of  the  inserted 
thanksgivings.  For  though  some  scholars  (Stekhoven,  ZATIV,  i.\.  132;  ]. 
Robertson,  Croall  Lectures  on  the  Psaliiis)dQnyiha.i\.\\e\A\\!is*t  l/lJ^hi  ]^  (7'.  16) 
can  have  been  applied  to  itself  by  the  community,  yet  others  of  not  inferior  reputa- 
tion (Sta'de,  ZA  J'ir,\m.  126;  M'a.,ad loc;  Beer, /;/a!Vt'.-/j.)  find  no  difficulty  in  this. 
The  present  writer  agrees  witli  neither  school.  There  is  the  strongest  probability  liiat 
another  and  much  easier  reading  underlies  our  text.  Nor,  indeed,  is  it  a  priori 
likely  that  such  a  very  unoriginal  psalmist  would  have  coined  such  a  phrase.  The 
possible  literary  reminiscences  of  the  psalmist,  or  psalmists,  are  collected  by 
Robertson  Smith  in  0TyO'\  435-437  ;  it  is  true,  textual  criticism  may  modify 
details  of  the  list  (see  notes).  \'erses  14  and  15  seem,  from  the  metrical  irregularities, 
to  be  a  later  insertion.  On  this  psalm,  cp.  Coblenz,  pp.  63-65  (who  shows  the 
speaker  to  be  the  community). 

A  prayer.      Of ''Arab-eihan.  I 

1       Incline  thine  ear,  O  Yahwe  !  and  answer  me, 
For  I  am  one  that  sufferetii  and  is  need}'. 
Guard  my  soul,  for  in  thee  I  take  refuge,  2 

Deliver  thy  servant  who  trusteth  in  thee. 

Have  pity  upon  me,  O  Yahwe  !  for  unto  thee  3 

I  call  from  those  of  Jerahmeel. 

Sustain  the  soul  of  thy  servant,  4 

Guard  me  from  those  of  Ishmael. 

For  thou,  O  Yahwe  !  art  good  and  forgiving,  5 

10     Rich  in  lovingkindness  to  all  that  call  upon  thee. 

Give  ear,  O  Yahwe  !  to  my  prayer,  6 

Attend  to  the  sound  of  my  supplications. 

In  Jerahmeel  I  seek  thee,  [O  Yahwe  !]  7 

I  call  upon  thee,  for  thou  answerest  me. 

There  is  none  like  thee  among  the  gods,  8 

O  Yahwe  !  no  works  like  thine. 

All  nations  of  the  countries  shall  come  9 

And  do  homage  before  thee,  O  Yahwe  !' 
For-  +thou  art+  great  and  a  doer  of  wonders,  10 

20     Thou  art  God,  thou  alone. 

'  And  shall  glorify  thy  name.  -  Thou  art. 


54 


THE    PSALMS. 


Show  me,  O  Yahwe !  thy  way, 

And  I  will  walk  on  in  thy  faithfulness. 

I  will  give  thanks  to  thee'  with  all  my  heart. 

And  will  glorify  thy  name  for  ever. 

For  great  is  thy  lovingkindness  towards  me. 
And  thou  hast  rescued  my  soul  from  Ishmael. 
Turn  thou  unto  me,  and  have  pity  upon  me, 
Grant  thy  help  to  thy  servant. 


II 

12 

13 
16 


30     Give  succour  because  of  thy  faithfulness  ; 
And  my  haters  will  see  with  shame 
That  thou,  O  Yahwe  !  hast  helped  me  and  comforted  me. 


17 


2.  iva^T  ^2y-    As  XXXV.  10, 

xxxvii.  14,  xl.  iS,  Ixxiv.  21. — 4.  On 
Thi^  nna  see  crit.  .1. 

6.  From  tbose  of  Terabmeel. 

Cp.  Ixxvii.  2  f.  '  All  the  day  long,  is  an 
edifying  substitute,  or  rather  disguise 
(cp.  XXV.  5  &c.). 

7  f.  Sustain,  i.e.  lest  I  faint  in 
the  long  struggle.  Cp.  Ixiii.  2,  Jer.  iv. 
31. — Guard  vie,  c\;c.     Cp.  on  xxv.  i. 

9  f.  Cp.  Ex.  xxxiv.  6  f.  The  mercy 
of  God  was  strongly  felt  in  post-exilic 
times.  A  similar  feeling  in  Bal)ylon, 
in  Nebuchadnezzar's  time,  prompted 
the  application  of  the  epithet  rimiiiu 
(cp.  D'lm,  V.  15)   to   the  great  god 

Marduk. — n?D, '  forgiving,'  here  only ; 
but  cp.  nrivD,  cxxx.  4.  On  the 
linguistic  points  see  OP,  p.  479.  The 
Targumic  equivalent  of  1170  is  pili.^ 

12  f.  '•jn^l^nn  (fem.  ending),  as 
cxxx.  2. — 13  f.  Cp.  Ixxvii.  3,  xvii.  6. 

15  f.  Cp.  Ex.  XV.  II,  Dt.  iii.  24. — 
17  f.  Cp.  xxii.  28  ft".  —  19  f.  Cp. 
xivii.  3,  xlviii.  2,  Ixxii.  18,  Ixxvii. 
14  f.,  Ixxxiii.  19. 


21  f.  Cp.  xxvii.  II,  xxvi.  3.  At 
the  end  of  v.  1 1  the  received  text  gives 
a  fine  prayer  for  the  'union'  of  the 
'heart'  with  a  view  to  fearing  God's 
name.  This  is  usually  taken  to  mean, 
'  concentrate  all  my  powers  and  affec- 
tions on  thy  service'  (cp.  Augustine's 
Confessions,  i.  3,  i,  ii.  i,  i).  G  gives, 
'  let  my  heart  rejoice,'  «\;c.  Neither 
rendering,  however,  gives  a  natural  sense 
for  a  Hebrew  prayer ;  satisfactory 
parallels  are  wanting.  Appearances 
point  strongly  to  the  view  that  the 
passage  is  a  misread  and  misunder- 
stood gloss  (see  crit.  n.)  on  the  word 
'  Ishmael '  in  /,  26. 

26.  For  '  from  Ishmael '  the  editor 
has  given  '  from  the  lowest  Sheol'  (see 
crit.  n.).  This  is  due  to  a  reminiscence 
of  Dt.  xxxii.  22.  Captiviiy  in  a  foreign 
land  and  sore  oppression  in  their  native 
land  seemed  like  death  to  the  Israelites 
(cp.  Ivi.  13).  Verse  14  in  M  (taken 
from  liv.  5,  Ex.  xxxiv.  6)  describes  one 
of  the  experiences  which,  collectively, 
are  described  sometimes  as  'death.' 
\  erse  15  comes  from  Ex.  xxxiv.  6. 

28.  Help,  i.e.  as  shown  in  victory 
over  the  foe.  See  on  IxxxixC-',  //.  1-4, 
and  cp.  Ebenezer,  '  stone  of  help.' 


»  O  Yahwe  my  God  I 

-  Jerahmeelites,  Cushites  (r'.  11/'). —  (From  Sheol)  the  lowest  (i".  13). — 
O  God  !  the  proud  have  assaulted  me,  ]  a  crew  of  violent  ones  have  sought  my 
soul,  I  and  have  not  set  thee  before  them.  |  ]5ut  thou,  O  Lord!  art  a  God  com- 
passionate and  pitiful,  |  longsufiering,  and  rich  in  lovingkindness  and  faithfulness 

(ZT-.    14  f.). 


PSALM    LXXXVI.  55 

30.  Because  of  thy  faithfulness.  ihe    inner   circle   of    the    D^^Jl^,    his- 

As  cxvi.    16.     'riic  text  has  '  (t(j)   the  ,     ■     ,,  r^        1  *'"••.      1 

son  of  thy  handmaid,'  wiiere  Wihwe's  l"'"^^"y   S""''-      See,  however,  nitrod. 

'handmaid'  may  possibly  be  taken  to  '^^'^  ^'■'^^-  '^• 
mean  the  peo[)le  of  Israel,  out  of  whicir 
the    pious   community,    and    esjiecially  31.  Cp.  xl.  4,  Hi.  8,  vi.  11,  xxxv.  4. 

C7'itical  Notes.  3.  M  ''Ji^  I'^Dil  O  •  Elsewhere  the  more  modest 
expression  "Jl^Dn  is  used.  Another  '*JS — O  is  also  surprising.  Read 
perhaps  f  11  ■'J~)''Dn  ""D  •     (''J^<  due  to  editor.) 

4.  M  "Tl'^'J^  nnhi,  superfluous,  Ijut  not  to  be  omitted  without  ex- 
planation. Possibly  it  represents  D^'?N*jm^u3  ;  D'H'^i^  often  stands  for 
7J^Qn~)^  •     If  so,  it  may  represent  an  early  correction  of  □Vn~'73  (^-  'j)- 

6.  M  DVn~'7D.  Read  D^'7^<^^-1>Q  (see  on  xxv.  5,  xlii.  4,  lii.  3, 
hi.  2,  &c. 

7.  M  riQii^,  cp.  xc.  16.     The  context  favours  TjbD  ;  cp.  liv.  6. 

8.  '•JIJ^  'yh'^  O  is  superfluous  ;  ^^^^i  ^li'SJ ,  as  in  xxv.  i,  may 
represent    D"''7Si;;:Diy^?2    ""Jirj^  • 

13.  For  ^PTSl  DVl  read  "^'r^Ii^l'T  ^^<Dm^2,  as  in  Ixxvii.  3. 
Insert  TV\TV  ;  '>  was  lost  after  '^TW'^'i • 

17.  For  the  prosaic  rK'"^V  "lti'^^  I'^ad  probably  m}i"^^}ll  (cvi.  27, 
Gen.  xxvi.  3  f ). 

18.  M  adds  ■jl^Dti^'?  112D^T ,  against  metre. 

19.  ^^^^i  is  metrically  superfluous  ;  it  can  be  supplied  in  thought 
from  /.  20. 

22.  Read  *J''^^^<^  ;  G  Ka\  TTopevaofiai.  At  the  end  of  7'.  ii  M  gives 
"^DV  TMi~)''b  "'22'p  in"' .  This  is  usually  illustrated  by  Jer.  xxxii.  39, 
where,  bow'e'ver,  G'  reads  *^^^i  2^  •  Gr.,  Bi.,  Che.'",  following  G  S  read 
inv  But  see  exeg.  note.  It  is  to  be  feared  that  we  must  read 
&\b3  W^bi^Dni"  ■  The  former  word  is  doubly  represented.  The  cor- 
ruptions  are  of  a  recurrent  type. 

23.  M  inserts  ^"^'?^<  ''2"I?<  •    We  might,  however,  keep  ''i*7^i  ;  so  Du. 

26.   M  n^nnri  ':'^^<'j^.3.   cp.  Dt.  xxxii.  22,  j-i^r^nri  '?ij<'X'"ir, 

The  deliverance,  however,  is  always  represented  as  from  Jerahmeel  or 
Ishmael.  blhiti^  and  '^Nlli^"'  or  '^Nl^r^t:^''  are  readily  confounded. 
Read  "TSyilOLy^L^  ;  nTinn  is  probably  a  rhetorical  addition  to  ':'"lNi:' . 

28.  M  Tj-Tj;.  Rather  Tji;^  (Gr.)  The  phrase  TV  ]D2  \voukl  seem 
to  say  too  much  for  the  occasion  ;  contrast  Ixviii.  36. 

30.  M  •:JJn:^^*"'I2'? .  This  passage  and  cxvi.  16  have  been  har- 
monized. The  triie  reading  is  Tjj-^^j^  lyrj":) .  The  error  was  caused  by 
the  occurrence  of  "^l^y  close  by  (iii  both  passages).  The  proof  of  the 
correction  is  in  ?'.  \~aa,  where  Dij^  -ayiltT  "s  unintelligible,  and  does 


56  THE    PSALMS. 

not  connect  with  ''\^)  IJ^TV  Hli'i?  for  V]i}r\  occurs  in  xxii.  32,  iScc. 
Read  inpK  i^'D*?  nri:nn  (clitto.^raphecl).  HiViD':'  comes  from 
S^n*^  =  biiX"2V ,  a  gloss  on  ^i^yZ!  .  Cp.  Cn7.  Bib.  on  D'^PUtD  ,  Ezek. 
xxiii.  15. 

PSALM    LXXXVII. 

Jr^ENTAMKTERS.  A  psalm  of  the  expanded  Israel,  which  is  to  include  all  the 
converted  remnants  of  the  neighbouring  peoples  (xviii.  44-46,  Ixxvi.  11,  Zech.  xiii. 
16).  A  jiropiietic  writer  looked  forward  to  the  time  when  Misrim  should 
he  ackn<nvledged  by  \'alnve  as  his  people,  Asshur  as  the  work  of  his  hands,  and 
Israel  as  his  iiilieritance  (Isa.  xix.  25)  ;  but  the  psalmist  goes  beyond  this,  though 
not  beyond  the  prophetic  writer  of  Isa.  xliv.  3-5.  The  prospect  which  both  the 
]isalmist  and  the  Second  Isaiah  open  to  us  is  that  of  the  ado]:)tion  by  Zion  of  a 
number  of  \.  Arabians,  hitherto  known  as  Asshu rites,  Rehobites,  Jerahmeelites, 
Zarephathiles,  Misrites,  Cushites,  as  lier  sons.  Respectfully  these  new  children 
address  Zion  as  their  mother  and  Israel  as  their  father,  and  Vahwe  ratifies  the 
adoption  by  a  note  entered  in  the  heavenly  register  of  peoples.  Happy  is  the  city 
thus  enriched  by  an  enlarged  spiritual  citizenship.  No  earthly  or  heavenly  power 
can  subvert  it.  Well  may  the  local  congregation  of  Zion  burst  into  choral 
songs  of  praise.  The  Holy  Land,  once  thought  to  be  the  region  of  Horeb,  is  now 
the  country  whose  centre  is  Zion.  Here  are  the  holy  mountains  ;  here  are 
dwellings  dearer  to  Yahwe  than  those  which  gather  round  the  once  venerated 
shrines  of  the  mountain-land  of  Jerahmeel. 

It  has  been  remarked  by  VVellhausen  {Isr.  11.  jud.  Gesch.  163),  that  the  Judaizing 
of  Palestine  began  with  Galilee  (2  Chr.xxx.  1,10  f.,  25),  then  passed  on  to  "the  coast- 
districts  (*  Philistia  and  Tyre,'  Ps.  lxxxvii.4),  and  later  on  advanced  to  Bashan  (Ps. 
Ixviii.  16,  23).  It  has  also  been  remarked  that  the  choice  of  Tyre  in  our  psalm  as 
the  representative  of  Phcenicia  suggests  that  the  destruction  of  Sidon  by  Artaxerxes 
Ochus  (350  B.C.)  was  in  the  past.  According  to  Duhm,'the  'dwellings  of  Jacob' 
in  V.  2  are  (cp.  vv.  4ft,)  all  those  places  where  Jews  are  settled,  Alexandria, 
Tyre,  &c.  He  regards  this  psalm  as  an  expression  of  the  feelings  of  the  Jews  of 
the  Dispersion.  One  would  gladly  follow  these  able  critics,  but  their  theories  are 
based  on  the  corrupt  traditional  text.  With  regard  to  2  Chr.  xxx.  i,  5-II,  it  can  be 
made  probable  that  the  Chronicler  used  an  older  document,  in  the  original  text  of 
which  reference  was  made  to  Jewish  inhabitants  of  the  Negeb. 

Of  the  Korahites.     Marked.  I 

I   Happy  the  city  whose  foundations  |  are  on  the  holy  mountains  ! 
Yahwe   loves  the  gates  of  Zion  |  more  than  the  dwellings 

of  Jerahmeel.  2 

We  glorify  thee,  we    bless  thee  continually,  |  O    thou    city 
of  God  !  3 

Ashhur,  Rehob,  and  Jerahmeel —  |  they  are  thy  sons  ;i  4 

Zarephath,    Missur,    and    the    people    of   Cush —  |  Israel  is 

their  name  ; 
Zion  they  address  '  my  Mother,'  |  Israel  *  my  Father.'  5 

Yahwe  notes  in  the  register  of  peoples  | '  Israel  is  their  name.'     6 

[Happy  the  city  whose  foundations  |  are  on  the  holy  mountains  I] 
Yahw^  [our  God]  doth  establish  her,  ]  the  Most  High  [doth 
support  her].  5^ 

'  Those  of  Asshur  and  Jerahmeel  arc  thy  sons  {v.  7). 


PSALM  LXXXVII.  57 

1.  The  sure  foundation  of  Zion,  Dni\  i.e.  ^ii,72'n'V .  jllere,  liow- 
and  the  divine  protection  which  it  ever,  ^iTI  seems  to  come  from  2171 
enjoys,  are  repeatedly  referred  to  (xlviii.  .    . 

2  ff.,  cxxv.  1  f.,  cxxxiii.  3,  Isa.  xiv.  32,  =-m2rTl  •      '  Rehoboth '  plays   such 

xxviii.  16).  a     large    'part     in     the    traditions    of 

2  f.  See  introd.;  Mai.  i.  2  f.  is  not  Israel's  wars  with  the  horder-lands  of 

parallel. —  U'c  glorify   thee,    lvic.      Cp.  ^i'.  Arabia  that  we  cannot  be  surprised 

I's.  xlviii.  ;  cxxii.  6-9.  at    its    mention    in     a     psalm    which 

4   f.     See  introd.,   and   crit.    note.  celebrates  the  annexation  of  those  lands 

Ashhur,  Rehob  (Rehoboth),  and  Jerah-  t*^,  Canaan.-//;^;/  are  thy  sons.     The 

meelare  virtual  svnonyms.     Zarephath  adoption  of  these  peoples     among  the 

M'as  sometimes  regarded  as  in  Missur  ;  ^ons    (Jer.  ni.  19)  is  equivalent  to  their 

'  Cush,'  inasmuch  as  it  adjoined  Missur,  'ncorporation    as    citizens    of    Zion.— 

is  used  as  virtually  synonymous  with  it.  (-^''^^^    '^    '/'"'■    "«"'^-      Precisely    as 

'i'he    view  that  '  Rahab '    (M    gives  ^^^"Z  r^  ^-_               ^            n-,      j 

^_—      f~  a\  ■      .1       TT  1                           6   ff.    IVly    mother.       1  heodoret 

3n  I,    Cj  paa/3)  IS    the    Hebrew    or  .,,     .     .      ,,                                  1      j  1 

-  -'  r     "-y  illustrates  the  passage,  as  rendered  by 

Hebraized    name    of    a    mythological  G,  by  Gal.  iv.  26. — /;/  the  ret^ster  of 

monster  applied  to  Egypt  is  plausible  peoples.     For  Vahwe  is  the  king  of  all 

(cp.  Enc.   Bib.,  '  Rahab').      There  is  peoples,  though  none  is  so  near  to  him 

also  another  theory.     2m  in  Ixxxix.  as     Israel. — Doth,     establish     her;     as 

II  may  be  a  sarcastic  modification  of  xlviii.  9. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  Many  have  thought  that  the  opening  of  the 
psalm  is  incomplete.  Very  possibly,  however,  T'ti^  in  the  title  is  a 
remnant  of  ~)^V  "'Ili^hJ . — M  IjmD'-  The  existence  of  nnON  however, 
is  doubtful.     G  01  dfixeKioL  avrov.     Read  probably  H^P'TD''  • 

2.  M  2p;;>  niJ3:i^;:3  b'372'  This  is  rather  much  for  the  shorter 
half  of  a  pentameter.  Nor  is  there  much  force  in  the  statement  that 
Zion  is  dearer  to  Yahwe  than  any  of  the  (ordinary)  dwellings  of  Jacob. 
It  is,  however,  highly  probable  that  3pJ7^  has  sometimes  arisen  out  of  a 
corruption  of '?hJ,^n"l^ ,  of  which  word  '?3[(2]  may  also  be  a  fragment. 
We  thus  get,  as  /.  2d,  b^<a^~l^  m^^'^Dl^ ,  to  the  great  advantage  of  the 
sense.     See  introd. 

3.  M    "^3.    IZl/^    DilBDi .      Harsh    in   the   extreme.      Biithgen 

•  •  """  *  ■ 

renders,    '  Noble   things    are   to   be   said    {diccnda  sunt)   of    thee,'   and 

criticizes  the  i\iiKr]6r]  of  G.  Griitz  would  emend  "jQ  "121"Th}  ;  Uuhm 
^2  121"TD  (partic,  Arainaizing,  instead  of  verb  fin.).  But  it  is  a  col- 
lective expression  of  Israel's  love  for  Zion  that  we  expect.  The  trouble- 
some 1Dj"1  is  probably  l\pj"l .     Read  TJD^^?  T'-'j'n  "^1233  • 

4-     ■'jn^'?    byys    2n")|T3T}<.     The    exact    meaning    of   '•^n''    is 
T  :   :         V  T  -  -  •  :  - 

disputed  ;  does  it  mean  '  as  those  who  know  me,'  or  '  with  reference  to 

those,' &c.?  Shall  we  readlOThi  (M)  orliDIhi  (G)?  And  how  conies  Egypt 

(as  is  supposed)  to  be  mentioned  by  the  obscure  title  '  Rahab  '  ?     Indeed, 

the  whole   sentence   is  unnatural.     Griitz   proposes   to   read   '^   ^^^7'';'' 

rendering,  '  Shall  I  mention  Egypt  and   Babylon  [foes  of  Israel]  as  the 

friends  of  Yahwe?'     Almost  more  unnatural.     A   ray  of  light,  however, 

shines  from  '^yv'") ,  when  we  remember  the  prop,  name  7N^n' ,  which, 

from  a  study  of  i  Chr.  xii.  20,  we  caji  see  to  be  a  corruption  of  'PS'^HT  ; 


58  THE    PSALMS. 

most  probably  this  word  was  written  in  the  margin  as  a  correction  of  7^2,- 
That  '7^2  is  frequently  written  in  lieu  of  some  popular  corruption  of 
7SL2m^  \ve  shall  see  again  and  again  as  we  revise  the  text  of  the  Hebrew 
Bible  (see  r.i^".  on  cxxxvii.  i).  ^m  (see  exe.i^.  note,  and  cp.  Efic.  Bib., 
'Rahab  ')  is  probably  an  editorial  modification  of  ^m  (Rehob).  ~)*^Ti< 
(followed  by  Pasek)  probably  comes  from  ■^^^'<i'^^  (Ashhur) ;  cp.  i  Chr. 
ii.  24,  where  the  Tekoa  referred  to  is  a  place  in  the  Negeb.  Read,  there- 
fore, 'p^^D^■^"'^  nmi  "nnt^^j;  .— M  niin  .  This  should  be  a  fragment  of 
a  statement  respecting  the  three  peoples  just  mentioned.  The  context 
(see  V.  ^aa  in  G)  suggests  "?J*iIl  HSn,  and  this  is  supported  by  v.  7, 
which,  when  carefully  examined,  shrivels  up  into  "T^  D'^'^Ni'^FT")''!  DHtl'NI 
(^J'i^'J  '?D  represents  two  fragments  of  bhJDfn^)-  This  is  probably  a 
variant  to  the  opening  of  v.  4,  and  it  enables  us  to  complete  the  text  of 
/.  4  by  inserting  *]3 ,  i.e.  *]''J3  . 

5.  M  ri3"Di^   liT  T\d~>^  ■     '3  and  ~)ii  are  so  often  miswritten  for 

j~I3")a  and  "l^rj ,  that  it  would  be  rash  to  build  a  theory  to  account  for 

the  strange  combination,  '  Philistia  and  Tyre,  with  Ethiopia.'     D^  should 

be  D^l  (Gr.,  Bi.).     Cp.  on  Ixxxiii.  7.    So,  on  the  main  point,  Wi.  {Miesri, 

ii.  9)  and  Hommel  {Aufsiitzc,  iii.  i,  p.  307),  Enc.  Bib.,  col.  3164  (written 

early  in  1901). — M  Qli;  IT  HT .     A  corruption  which  has  had  theological 

consequences  ;  see  Delitzsch's  note.     Read  probably  D!2^  '7hJ"1t£/^  • 

T  :         ••  t:  • 

6.  M  '^ly^'^  'IV^7T.     G  /iijT-T/p  crftwi/  fpfT,  whence  Wellh.  and  Duhm, 

nOhJ  Di^  ''ir\".     Better  II^N'*  >a^*   ''il^ .     ^DI^  easily  fell  out  before 

rzi^i .— M  rTn"")^'''  ^'^i^\   ^''^*  ■     '  ^he  repetition  i:r>J^")   Ti;>ii  paraphras- 

tically  expresses  "the  whole"'  (Bii.).     Read  probably  ''3l>?   '?J<"lii'^';'T  . 

•  T        ••   T :  • : 
So  parallelism  is  restored  (cp.  on  /.  5*^). 

7.  Note   that   v.    $b   should   come   after   ?'.    6.      For  2*1/133   I'cad 

2DD3.  (cp.  Du.).— In  /,  yb  read  again  Uuit   bii''\)i}''  ■     Tibu  is  probably  a 

Tj.  f  t:-»t:. 

corruption  of  7^J'^ti*^  (originally  a  correction). 

9,     Wellh.  omits  ]V'?y  ;  it  should,  however,  be  a  remnant  of  z'.  gb. 

Nim  =  mnv   Read  [n'ps'pp;]  iv*?:;!  nyo;  [^ij^h'^n]  mnv 

As  7'.  7,  Wellh.  and  Haupt  suggest  D3iy?:2  d?3  □'•^<D'7^D  □"•TltTT 

T       :        T\ 

"7"^. .     See,  however,  end  of  note  on  /.  4.    With  regard  to  G's  17  KaroiKia  eV 

aui,  note  a  similar  confusion  of  S  in  Ixxxiv.  7. 

PSALM    LXXXVIII. 

i  KIMETKRS.  The  speaker,  excluded  from  Vahwe's  presence,  seems  to  himself  like  a 
dead  man, — like  the  di.-.honoured  corpses  of  Israel's  ancient  enemies  (see  on  //.g  (.). 
In  language  reminding  us  of  other  elegiac  works,  he  complains  of  his  rejection  by 
Yahwe,  and  describes  his  sufferings.  '1  he  psalmist  sees  no  ray  of  hope  ;  no 
liturgical  poet  has  corrected  him  by  an  encouraging  appendix.  As  Bishop  Hare  long 
ago  pointed  out,  the  close  of  the  psalm  is  wanting  (so  also  Olshausen).  The 
speaker  is  obviously  (see  ri'.  5,  6,  16)  pious  Israel;  so  in  early  times  TS,  Theod.  of 


PSALM    LXXXVIII.  59 

Mops.,  Kashi,  Kimlu.  Cp.  Smend,  126  f.  ;  Beer,  68  f.  ;  Coblenz,  127  ff.  A 
closer  criticism  of  the  text  confirms  this.  In  v.  5/'  '  a  man  without  strength '  is 
corrupt  (indeed,  how  could  the  speaker,  who  is  at  any  rate  imaginatively  a  person, 
say  that  he  was  like  a  man  ?)  ;  and  in  vv.  16  fif.  N.  Arabian  ethnic  names  probably 
reappear. 

There  are  many  literary  reminiscences.  But  we  need  hardly  say,  with 
Kirkpatrick,  that  the  community  identifies  itself  with  the  typical  sufferer.  Job.  If 
there  are  points  of  contact  with  Job,  this  is  only  because  it  was  still  felt  that  Job 
was  a  personification  of  rigiiteous  Israel  (cp.  Lam.  iii.).  It  is  certain,  however, 
that  the  speaker  is  the  pious  community,  a  view  which  was  current  in  early  times 
(see  Targam  and  Peshitta).  There  is  no  occasion  whatever  to  suppose  that  the 
primary  reference  of  the  psalm  was  personal. 

The  title  is  given  in  three  forms.  Note  that  j"nj^'^  probably  comes  from 
iT)D'?;r,  and  that  mi^S'^y  and  r^'^FT^D  represent  either  n^^*:;  and  D''7^<Dm^ 
respectively,  or,  both  D'^'^Nl^jm''  (cp.  JITDt^).     See  Introd. 

Marked.     Of  tJie  sons  of  Korah.    Deposited.     Of  the  Jerahmeelites  ( ? ) . 
Deposited.     Of  Neman  the  Ezrahite  {or  Ash/uiritel).  i 

I       O  Yahwe  my  God  !  I  cry  for  help  by  day,  2 

In  the  night  my  calHng  is  before  thee  ; 

Let  my  prayer  reach  thy  presence,  3 

Bend  thine  ear  to  m}'  wail. 

For  m}'  soul  is  sated  with  troubles,  4 

My  life  is  on  the  threshold  of  Sheol; 

I  resemble  those  that  have  gone  down  to  the  pit,  5 

I  am  become  like  a  dishonoured  corpse. 

I  am  accounted  as  the  dead  Jerahmeelites,  6 

10     As  those  mortally  wounded  by  the  sword, 
Whom  thou  rememberest  no  more, 
For  they  are  banished  from  thy  sight. 

Thou  hast  made  me  to  dwell  deep  down  in  the  pit,  7 

In  dark  places,  in  gloom  +of  Deathland+  ; 
Thou  hast  poured  out  upon  me  thy  wrath,  8 

All  thy  floods  thou  hast  made  to  sweep  over  me. 

My  familiar  friends  thou  hast  put  far  from  me,  9 

Thou  hast  made  me  an  abomination  to  them  ; 
Wasted  and  terrified  is  my  frame,  10 

20     Mine  eye  is  quenched  from  sorrow. 

0  Yahwe  !  I  invoke  thee  daily,  1 1 

1  spread  out  my  hands  unto  thee. 

Wilt  thou  perform  wonders  for  the  dead  ?  1 1 

Will  the  Rephaim  arise  and  praise  thee  ? 


60  THE    PSALMS. 

Can  thy  lovingkindness  be  rehearsed  in  the  grave,  1 2 

Thy  faithfuhiess  in  Perdition-huid  ? 

Can  thy  wonders  be  made  known  in  the  darkness,  13 

Thy  righteousness  in  the  land  of  the  sleepers  ? 

Unto  thee,  O  Yah  we  !  do  I  cry  for  help,  14 

30     Early  does  my  prayer  go  to  meet  thee. 

Why,  O  Yahwe  !  dost  thou  cast  off  my  soul,  15 

And  hide  thy  face  from  me  ? 

Wretched  am  I  and  exhausted  because  of  Arabia,  1 6 

I  bear  [the  hatred  of]  Jerahmeel : 

Tents  of  Arabians  encompass  me,  17 

Terrors  of  +deathly+  gloom  beset  me. 

Jerahmeelites,  like  water,  surround  me,  18 

They  all  beset  me  together  ; 

My  friends  thou  hast  put  far  from  me,  IQ 

40     Aly   neighbours   and   familiar    friends   thou   hast   with- 
holden. 

( Conclusion  7va?itiiig.) 

9.   See  crit.  11.-13.  See  on  Ixxxvi.  24.  The  Rephaim,  equivalent  to 

13,   and   Lam.  iii.  55.-14.    In   dark  'the  dead.'     See  ^//t.  AV(^.,  '  Rephaim.' 

places.     So  cxliii.  3,  Lam.  iii.  6.     The  25.       Perdition  -  land.        Heb. 

land  of  darkness  is  Sheol,  Job  x.  21  f.  '  Abaddon.'      Like    '  Death  '    a   syno- 

So  the  Babylonians  call  the  underworld  nym  for  Sheol  (see  Job  xxvi.  6,  xxviii. 

'  the  land  where  one  sees  nothing.'  22).     Abaddon  was   one  of  the  seven 

/-_...-       ^       ^          o  hells    in    the    Talmud  (ci").  on    xl.   3). 

16.     All    thy    floods.      See    on  ^jjj^^^  ^^.^,,j  ^^^^        ^-^^  ^^^dition.' 

xvni.  5,  xln.  0.     The  ocean-floods  are  -„,,...                 , 

meant  ;  cp.  Ex.  xv.  5,  Ts.  Ixviii.  23.  39  f-  See  Job  xvn.  14,  xix.  13   and 

op.  the   oppressive   description  of  the 

23-28.     The    speaker    repeats    his  Egyptian    Anienti,    '  The     country   of 

daily  prayer,    lie  has  perhaps  conceived  heavy  sleep  and  of  darkness  .  .  .  They 

the  idea  of  resurrection,  but  no   more  wake   not    to   see  their  brothers,  they 

dares  to  cherish  it  than  the  speaker  of  recognize  no  more  father  and  mother.' 

Job  xiv.  14.  (Maspero.) 

Critical  Note.,  i  f.  Read  ^r\Vy;V  \;l'?l<^  (Hare,  Kenn.,  Bi.,  Weir, 
Che.f",  Bii.,  Kau.,  Driver,  &c.),  and 'take  DV'i  or  rather  U'^y^  (cp.  G  T), 
from  /.  2.     Ci).  /.  30.     Read   ''jlp;,'^*"!. 

7.  i\I  '•jnnti'n:].  Read  Tl|?i:'rpj  ;  'ni  is  wanted  for  /.  9.  The  con- 
fusion was  easy.     See  xxviii.  i. 

8.  M  TK~]^J<i  "12J3  .  G  ws  i'lvdpwno'i  (l,:ii)rj6t]Tos,  unphilological  and 
poor.  JTITN  in  -xxii.  20  is  corrupt.  Read  '7103  1^33  (Isa.  xiv.  19). 
'T'hi,  however,  represents  not  only  a  part  of  tTJ],  but  also  'pNi^m^  (see 
next  note). 


PSALM    LXXXVIII.  6l 

9  f.      IM  wb'n   V23   "'i'Dn   D'jIQn    (I'asek   at    close).      Driver    is 
•  T  -;  :        •  :  T  .  ..  - 

content  with  reading  ^^'3^  for  "'ii^Bn .     Duhm  remarks  that  neither  ^'ki'Sn 

nor  II^^^  gives  a  sense,  and  reads  ""jnion  (Job  xl.  13).  Probably 
^371^;^rn  would  be  better.  But  the  corruption  certainly  lies  deeper. 
D\"lD  and  Q^'^tTT  should  have  awakened  thoughts  of  Ezek.  x\.\i.  17, 
xxxii.  20  fif.,  XXXV.  8,  and  the  whole  context  should  have  suggested  cxliii.  3, 
and  perhaps  xxxi.  i^'t-  As  to  'ti^SH  ,  it  has  clearly  come  out  of  M^IiTTJ 
(see  on  /.  7).  I  do  not  follow  Duhm's  objection  to  ')72D  ;  it  is  surely 
right,  only  we  must  read  [Dj^D'OD .  to  match  it.  A  keen  investigation  of 
the  passages  of  Ezekiel  referred  to  will  show  that  the  poet-prophet 
alludes  to  a  slaughter  of  the  Jerahmeelites  in  early  times,  which  was  so 
terrible  that  it  became  typical  of  the  heaviest  misfortune  for  fallen 
warriors  (see  on  xxxi.  13/?)-  Taking  over  Thi,  t'-c  7>J?2ni"',  from  v.  5 
(end),  read  '?^<^p^T■]^  ^irjD  ^l^Ii^m  .—After  U'bbn  M  gives  ^2D'lD 
~)3.p — a  weak  phrase  not  found  elsewhere.  ^^Dll^j  however  (G  gives  no 
help),  is  simply  a  corrupt  fragment  of  a  second  ^l^li^HJ,  which  originally 
perhaps  stood  in  the  margin  as  a  correction  of  ^ti^3n .  IZlp  is  mis- 
written  for  2")n  •     Read,  therefore,  as  /.  10,  2")n  '''7'^n  r.23. 

vT      ..-:-  : 

12.     INI   l-in:   TTTr3.     Not   Hebrew.     Read  -Iti'l-IJ  T^''^'^  (see  on 

t:.       '  :t.  t:.       '  V  "  •• 

xxxi.  23). 

13  f.  M  ••jnr.  (".  "JDii^  (edevTu  lie;  SO  in  T'.  9).  Read  '•JPlIlI^i!! 
(cxliii.  6,  Lam.  iii.  6). — M  n'l'^iipZl,  as  if  the  ocean  were  meant.  Read 
D"1Q'7i:2  (G  S,  Houb.,  Kenn.,  Gr.),  to  suit  'ni22- 

15  f.  M  HD^D  -  Kenn.  compares  Ezek.  xxiv.  2;  so  too  Siegfr.- 
Stade.  But  the  passages  are  hardly  parallel.  Read  pi3^V  (Ixxxix.  6).— 
M  ^nut'i^i;  highly  questionable.  Read  ^""^Bli^  (see  on  xviii., /.  9). — 
M  rbb  h'^y  •     G  S  express  >bl^  PD^yn  ;  'though  B  }«}  have  8tn\//«X/xa 

T    •  •  ~  T      T    :  ~  v:  V 

as    well.    A*    omits    it.      Gr.   rightly   adopts   this.      (BJi.,   IXi.,   J"l*3^i  ; 

We.,  nn*i). 

T     •  • 

18.     Duhm  reads  j"ini;ij'n  ;  cp.  i^^jn^n ,  Iviii.  5  (K6n.,  §  336  w,  z). 

19  f.  M  hJ'^J^  S*?!  N^D.  Obscure,  and  against  parallelism.  Read 
probably  ^:2'Av"h^2i\  V3  (cp.  vi.  3f.).— M  Hl^l  ""JT-  Noun  and 
verb  do  not  match  ;  ^T^^J"I  would  require  "'ii^SJ  (Jer.  xxxi.  25).  Merz, 
HDyi:)  '•3T-  But  why  not  HDi^l?  G  vaguely  iiaBivrjaav.  2TS 
connect  isi  with  Aram.  2"T ,  '\o' melt.'— M  ■'Ji?"''ii:.:  .  More  suitably 
pro  (Herz). 

T  . 

28.  M  r^^V'l  'pi^?»  ^^  yn  fViXeAjjo-zieVv  (so  SJ)?  Or,  as  most 
moderns, 'in  the  "land*  o"f  Lethe'  ('where  all  things  are  forgotten,' E  V, 
cp.  Job  xiv.  21)?  T?"^"!,  however,  is  a  an.  Xey.,  and  even  if  it  existed, 
and  meant  '  oblivion,'  it  would  not  be  a  good  parallel  to  TJ^'H.      Clearly 


62  THE    PSALMS. 

the  riyht  rcadinj,'  is  D^2V]  V"lkSZl  (cp.  /.  24  and  Dan.  xii.  2).  The  >2NT 
which  opens  the  next  chiuse,  and  which  is  metrically  superfluous,  may 
have  arisen  out  of  D^J[*i^J^  >  which  perhaps  stood  in  the  margin.  Pasek 
follows. 

29.  ^2K1  lias  just  been  explained. — ^s  ^-  P^j)  ^s  Schultens  and 
Griitz  saw,  should  be  vy  (so  G  S  presuppose).  "H^jl^,  I  formerly 
thought  should  be  '^niP^'^  (Uuhm,  independently,  ^"ly^p).  But  this 
makes  the  line  (verse)  too  lony.  See  next  note.— M  ^""(Dl^  ^~l^iii?3 
^^^^^i  .  G  (randvwdqv  =  TJ1D^^  (a  supposed  Imperf.  of  TJT*3)  ?  Accord- 
ing to  Herz,  who  adopts  TJVON ,  (^n^oprjdqv  in  G  also  represents  *]10S , 
since  in  Lev.  xxv.  47  this  version  gives  aVo/jfy^ftV  for  TJ!^.  If  so,  G  must 
have  found  HJISJ^  untranslatable.  Michaelis  long  ago  suggested  J<iJl3J< 
(cp.  xxxviii.  9),  which  Ol.,  Hu.,  Gr.,  &c.,  favour.  '^''Qi^  is,  of  course, 
wrong  ;  '  thy  terrors '  might  be  Tj^jni^^^Jii ,  though  the  plur.  form  J^lQ^hi 
only  occurs  in  a  corrupt  passage  (Iv.  5).  Formerly  I  ventured  to  read, 
mSl*JT   ^!2PT   '*JlNii'J-     It  seems  to  me  now,  however,  a  grave  cjuestion 

Tt': .TT  . 

whether  so  deeply  melancholy  a  psalm  must  not  originally  have  contained 
Some  historical  (or  quasi-historical)  references.  The  statement  in  z'.  18 
that  a  mysterious  something  surrounds  the  speaker  '  like  water '  suggests 
comparing  such  a  passage  as  xviii.  5  f.  (also  xvii.  10  f.,  Ixix.  3-5  ?). 
Must  not  IJJD  come  from  l^i^D  and  y:2ii  (DJ^T)  from  ':'N,'::m^? 
And  if  so,  n^lQhJ  (which  is  surely  not  a  synonym  for  'Mkf2 ,  from  Ass. 
appunama^  as  Frd.  Del.  thought  \^Prol.  135  ff.])  may  more  plausibly  be 
corrected  into  *J'1S^^J  than  into  ;i"l3J^  (see  below). — •:;5  f.  M's  TJilH  is 
hardly  right,  the  plur.  form  not  being  in  use,  while  ""Jirin^iJ  is  a  self- 
evident  error.  Most  read  ^JIJHD^  ;  a  reason  for  the  Kibbus  in  M  is  given 
by  Koriig  (ii.  i,  p.  584,  n.  2).     But  is  this  enough  ?     DVn~73  is  no  doubt 

-  T 

possible,  but  is  it  not  rather  weak  ?  Is  not  Q^D3  enough  qualification  of 
"•^IHD  ?  If  historical  references  in  the  style  of  those  in  other  psalms  are 
necessary,  the  following  restoration  of //.  33-37  is,  at  any  rate,  plausible:  — 

2irrj  v:)^i  ^jk  ^jy 

••::-:        -  :  .        .       tt 

D^3-iv  *'?^^<  ^:n3^pn 

•    :-      ••  t:  T       .       '.  . 

j"n^^^  ••riua  ^iT\r\3 

It  is  important  to  notice  that,  as  in  parallel  cases,  MXti'^  does  double 
duty,  i.e.  both  for  itself  and  for  Pst^W  ■  That  ipjD  and  "f^Di^  are  both 
disguises  of  ethnics,  we  have  seen  already.  nj"lE3i<  {i.e.  "'J133J^)  would 
seem  to  be,  here  at  least,  a  correction  of  ''JIDpn  (cp.  G's  nepua-xov 
in  xviii.  5).     ''bv  '"  -"''''•  7  stands  for  ^'3'7^J ;  it  may  equally  well  here 


PSALM    LXXXIX. — I.  63 

represent  vilhi .  In  "|''jnn  ,  easy  transposition  and  corruption  nuist  be 
assumed  ;  FT  comes  from  Jl  ;  the  final  2  should  become  the  initial  letter. 
"•Jinni^ji  is  due  to  a  scribe  who  wrote  JllDn^'^ii  (for  Jm^'^jj)  in  error  ; 
■♦J  represents  D ,  as  often.  QVn~'7D  is  a  disguise  of  D"''?X,^n')"'  (xliv.  23. 
Ivi.  2). 

39  f.  Read  ^IHh} .  ^l")  makes  /.  39  too  long.  Read  ''^1  ;  T  belongs 
to  the  next  word,  which  should  be  ^^l^TDI  •  TJIi/fTD  is  puzzling.  Konig 
(Synf.  312)  suggests  -^tH  D^yT^.     Ba.,  partly  after  J  S,  it^n  D^PTQ; 

•      T\  :  T    T 

the  readmg  "^IVHD  is  also  found.  Independently,  both  Herz  and  the 
writer  have  thought  of  ^J^flDX^  (0  =  "J)  ;  cp.  Job  xix.  14. 


PSALM    LXXXIX.— I. 

J.  ETRAMETERS.  As  Olsliauseii  almost  saw,  and  Bickell  has  expressly  main- 
tained, Ixxxix.  2-19  (excluding  z'v.  4  f.)  and  w.  20-52  are  two  distinct  psalms  (or 
parts  of  psalms).  The  conjecture  of  J.  P.  Peters  (y  B  L,  1893,  p.  60),  that 
z'v.  10-13  (or  15)  may  come  from  an  earlier  poem,  written  in  Galilee,  is  a  bold 
inference  from  an  obscure  and  doubtless  corrupt  passage  {z'.  13).  Bickell  and 
Duhm  think  that  both  psalms  are  by  the  same  author.  But  they  are  not  in  the 
same  metre,  and  if  we  admit  that  7'z'.  4  and  5  were  inserted  later  as  a  link  between 
the  two  psalms,  it  is  surely  most  natural  to  assume  that  originally  they  had  no 
connexion  whatever.  That  pious  Israel  is  the  speaker  is  plain  from  7'.  1  compared 
with  vv.  16-19.  It  is  not  so  obvious,  from  the  traditional  text,  what  is  the  occasion 
of  the  psalm.  According  to  Baethgen,  t'Z'.  2-19  are  a  song  of  praise  for  the 
promise  given  to  David,  together  with  an  eulogium  of  the  fortunate  lot  of  Israel, 
who  has  such  a  mighty  and  gracious  God.  Duhm's  explanation  is  not  very 
difterent,  except  that  while  Baethgen  supposes  the  poet  to  mean  in  i/.  19  that  the 
Messianic  king,  though  not  yet  visible,  is  ideally  pre-existent,  Duhm  thinks  the 
meaning  to  be  that  the  existing  Asmonrean  kingdom  is  under  Vahwc's  protection. 
The  truth,  however,  appears  to  be  that  no  king  at  all  was  spoken  of  in  the 
original  text  of  v.  19,  and  that  the  psalm  is  really  an  epinikion.  The  poet  takes 
up  his  position  in  the  future,  which  by  faith  he  realizes  as  if  present  (cp.  Ps.  ix). 
The  great  foes  of  the  Jews,  called  Jerahmeelites,  or  Ishmaelites,  or  Cushites,  will 
then  have  been  overthrown,  not  by  Israel's  might,  but  by  the  prevailing  right 
hand  of  Yahwe.  Ps.  Ixxiv.^^j  supplies  a  striking  parallel  to  vv.  10-13  •  '^oth 
passages  have  been  very  much  misunderstood.  On  the  curious  Talmudic 
ascription  of  Ps.  Ixxxix.  to  Abraham  (the  true  '  Ezrahile,'  or  man  from  the  east) 
see  Driver,  Introd.,  p.  xxxiii.,  note.  Vv.  10-15  ^^^  treated  by  Gunbel,  Schijpj., 
pp.  33  f.;  see  also  note  '  on  the  composite  character  of  the  psalm. 

Marked:  of  Ethan  the  Ezrahite  {or  Ashhurite  ?).  i 

I     Thy  lovingkindnesses,  O  Yahwe  !  I  will  sing  for  ever,  2 

Age  after  age  I  will  make  known  thy  faithfulness. 
For  thou  hast  destroyed  Jerahmeel  in  thy  lovingkindness,      3 
The  sons  of  Ishmael  thou  hast  bowed  down  in  thy  faith- 
fulness. ^ 

'  (For  thou  hast  said,  'My  kindness  is  built  for  ever.  .  .)  I  have  made  a 
covenant  with  my  chosen  one,  |  I  have  sworn  unto  David  my  servant,  |  thy  seed 
will  I  make  firm  for  ever,  |  thy  throne  will  I  build  for  many  ages  {zv.  4  f.). 


64  THE    PSALMS. 


And  thy  wonders  became  known  among  the  Jerahmeelites,'      6 
Yea,  thy  faithfuhiess  in  the  assembly  of  the  Cushites. 

For  who  in  Cush  can  encounter  Yahwe,  7 

10  +Or+  confront  Yahwe  among  the  sons  of  Jerahmeel  ? — 
A    God  who   has  proved  his  terribleness  in   Asshur   and 

Cusham,  8 

Great  is  he  and  fearful  towards  all  those  of  Ishmael. 

[Thou  art]  Yahwe,  the  God  of  hosts  (?),  9 

Who  is  like  thee  (?)  -         -^       - 

Thy  lovingkindness   [thou  hast   magnified]  at  the  cost  ot 

the  Jerahmeelites, 
Thy  faithfulness  at  the  cost  of  the  Ishmaelites. 

It  is  thou  that  rulest  the  pride  of  the  sea,  10 

When  its  billows  roar,  it  is  thou  that  subduest  them  ; 
Thou  that  with  thy  might  didst  crush  Jerahmeel,'-  1 1 

;:o  That  with  thy  strong  arm  didst  break  down  thine  enemies. 

Thine  is  Ishmael  ;  yea  thine  is  Missur  ;  12 

Tubal  and  Jerahmeel,  thou  didst  form  them  ; 
It  is  thou  that  didst  create  Zaphon  and  Yaman,  13 

Rehoboth  and  Hermon,  Cusham  and  Rimmon. 

Thine  is  help,  with  thee  is  might,  14 

Prevailing  is  thy  hand,  triumphant  thy  right  hand  : 
Righteousness  and  justice  are  the  base  of  thy  throne,  15 

Lovingkindness  and  truth  advance  to  attend  thee. 

Happy  the  people  that  know  thy  fear  !  16 

30  In  the  light  of  thy  face,  O  Yahwfe  !  do  they  walk  : 

At  th}'  deeds  they  exult  perpetually,  17 

At  thy  righteousness,  [O  Yahwe  !]  do  they  shout  for  joy. 

For  thou  art  our  glory,  our  fortress,  18 

By  thy  favour  it  is  that  our  horn  becomes  high  ; 
For  the  Jerahmeelites  thou  hast  given  over  unto  us,  19 

Those  of  Cush  and  Ishmael  we  have  taken. 

'  Ishmaeliles.  -  Rehob. 


PSALM    LXXXIX. —  I. 


65 


I.  M's  text  closely  resembles  Isa. 
Ixiii.  7  (opening).  —  3  f.  IM  partly  su£j- 
trests  a  comparison  with  xxxvi.  6,  cxix. 
89,  but  the  strani^e  phraseology  com- 
pels us  to  look  deeper  into  the  text. 
With  the  revised  text  cp.  ix.  2  ff. — 5  f. 

The  false  reading  "•/T^0^^  for  ^^n^^ 
in  V.  3a  went  together  with  a  theory 
that  the  whole  psalm  (which  is  really 
composite)  was  a  poetic  expansion  of 
2  S.  vii.  8  ff.  Cp.  on  lxxxix.(-').  Vv.  4  f. 
may  possibly  contain,  in  a  misread  form, 
fragments  of  the  true  text  of  //.  5  f. — 7. 

'TJ^79  .  Cp.  Ixxvii.  12,  15,  Ixxviii.  12, 
Ixxxviii.  II,  Ex.  xv.  11,  Isa.  xxv.  I. 
The  great  deeds  of  redemption,  in  the 
l)ast  and  in  the  future  (cp.  Isa.  /.f.),  are 

referred  to.  —  8.  Sip ,  '  concourse, 
multitude,'  as  Jer.  xxxi.  8,  xliv.  15,  &c. 
M's  D'^Ii'lp  'p  is  vague ;  it  might 
mean  '  the  assembly  of  the  holy  (Is- 
raelites),' like  Dn^DH  'p,  cxlix.  I, 
cp.  V'ii'lp ,  xxxiv.  10.  This  would 
at  first  sight  seem  to  be  favoured  by  v.  8, 
wliich,  apart  from  the  context,  we  should 
certainly  take  to  refer  to  the  Israelites. 

But  WtyD  in  V.  6a  and  D"'bK  ''Jl  in 
v.  6b  (M)  may  compel  interpreters  to 
explain  □''ti'lp  'p ,  as  well  as  TID 
"ip  ,  of  the  assembly  of  the  angels  (cp. 

Job  V.  I,  XV.  15,  Dt.  xxxiii.  2  f.  ?, 
Dan.  iv.  14).  A  closer  examination  of 
ihe  text  relieves  us  from  these  obscure 
phrases,  not  the  least  peculiar  of  which 
is  D''itD5i^  for  '  the  heavenly  ones.' 

•  -.T 

9.  t*    "yy^ '     '  instruxit     aciem     in 
aliquem,'  Jer.  1.  9  ;  so  IV   '3^>  Jt^r-  1- 


14.  nj^np'?  >',  2  s.  X.  9, 10, 17. — 

10.  The  inferior  divine  beings  have 
supplanted  the  bne  Jerahmeel  in  the 
faulty  traditional  text. — 11  f.  Cp.  on 
/.  8,  and  see  crit.  n.  ;  also  Ixxvi. ,  //. 
23  f. — 14.  Cp.  Ex.  XV.  20. 

17.     The    sea.     See  on  Ixv.  8. — 
19.   DUst  crush,  j"1hi31 .     So  Ixxii.  4, 

T         •     •  ■     ' 

where  the  oljject  of  the  verb  is  Cush, 
as  here  Jerahmeel  or  (see  crit.  note) 
Rehob. 

21  ff.    See  on  Ixxiv.  16  f. ,  xcv.  4  f. 
See  E71C.  Bib.,   'Zaphon.'     '  Yaman  ' 

is  the  ]V  of  Gen.  x.  2,  Ezek.  xxvii.  i^. 
TT  _     ,  -^ 

Isa.    Ixvi.    19  ;    it    is    a    corruption    of 

7^^It2rT~1"' ,   but   probably   became    the 

name  of  a  special  Jerahmeelite  dis- 
trict.— Herinon  and  Riiinnon  too,  which 
are  also  disguises  of  'Jerahmeel,'  are 
probably  districts  of  the  Negeb.  For 
the  former  cp.  Josh.  xi.  3,  17  (the 
scene  of  the  events  in  the  original  form 
of  the  narrative  in  Josh.  xi.  was  the 
Negeb;  cp.  Enc.  Bib.,  'Shimron'). 
For  Rimmon,  cp.  '  En-rimmon.' 

27.  So  xcvii.  2/',  cp.  Prov.  xvi.  12, 
xxv.  5. — 28.   Cp.  on  Ixi.  8,  Ixxxv.   11. 

29.  Thy  fear,  in  an  objective 
sense  (xix.  10),  =  the  precepts  of  the 
religion  of  Yahwe. 

33  f.  j~nN3n  ,  often  of  the  divine 
glory,  as  Isa.  xlvi.  13,  and  (of  the  ark) 
Ps.  Ixxviii.  61,  here,  however,  of 
Yahwe  as  the  pride  of  Israel  (cp.  Isa. 
XX.  5). — Our  horn.  See  on  Ixxv.  5. — 
35.  liliDi  ^s  Gen.  xiv.  20,  Hos.  xi.  8. 


Critical  Noks.     i  f.     M    ""ipn  •     Read   inOH  (G,  Gr.).     M's  >S2 
has  grown  out  of  a  dittographed  O  {I-  3)- 

3  f.  Plainly  znr.  3-5  in  M  are  not  in  order.  V.  3  justifies  the  state- 
ment in  V.  I  by  a  reference  to  a  promise  of  everlasting  favour  to  Israel. 
The  phraseology  has  points  of  contact  with  that  of  vv.  6  and  9.  Vv.  4 
and  5  introduce  a  special  reference  to  David  and  the  prophecy  in  2  S.  vii. 
13,  16,  which  does  not  fit  well  into  the  context.  Olshausen  partly  saw 
the  dil^culty,  but  Bi.(2)  was  the  first  to  attain  a  nearly  adequate  solution. 
He  thought  that  vv.  3-5  were  inserted  later  to  link  the  two  parts  together 
and  that  the  two  parts  were  really  independent  psalms.  This  solution  is 
in  the  main  correct,  but  the  form  needs  modification.  V.  3  may  seem  to 
II.  P 


66  THE    PSALMS. 

be  connected  with  7-7'.  4  f.  by  the  word  nj!lV  But  it  is  at  any  rate  (as 
we  have  seen)  much  more  closely  connected  with  7>v.  6,  9,  and  it  must 
be  evident  that  HJH^  is  wrong  ;  there  is  no  parallel  for  the  strange 
comparison  of  YahwL-'s  "IDH  to  a  building.  The  reading  n22^  is  con- 
nected with  ^/T'j!!  in  v.  5  ;  the  underlying  original  is  probably  ^J!l. 
Having  the  key  to  the  Psalms  in  our  hands,  we  have  a  right  to  expect  a 
reference  to  the  Jcrahmeelite  background  of  the  Psalter.  D/IP,  as  else- 
where, comes  from  [D"']'?^Ji2^")^  and  W'CiV  (followed  by  Pasek),  as 
occasionally  again,  from  ';?SyDIi'V     Cp.  on  v.  38c!:.     Read, — 


[Houb.'s  view  deserves  to  be  better  known.  He  begins  v.  3  with 
D'^U't'  O,  and  V.  4  with  TD^  rr\12'i^  O-  By  an  error,  the  scribe 
inserted  JHIDN  after  the  first  instead  of  after  the  second  O-  This  is 
plausible.  ^inD  and  /^"l(2^i  have  a  certain  resemblance,  so  that  jTTOK 
might  easily  fall  out  ;  a  corrector  might  as  easily  supply  J^1Q^i  after  the 
preceding  ^3  by  an  error.  y\ —  is  supported  by  G  J,  and  adopted  by  Bi.'i',. 
Che."i,  Ba.,  Du.  Houb.'s  view,  however  (with  which  Bi.'",  Che.''',  Du., 
agree  in  essentials),  is  only  a  makeshift  ;  the  context  remains  ill- 
connected.  Moreover,  vv.  4f.  were  plainly  meant  to  consist  of  trimeters, 
but  prefixing  m?2hJ~0  or  JTl^h}  to  v.  ^a  makes  it  a  tetrameter.  Ba.'s 
reading, — 

'  For  thou  hast  said,  "  For  ever  shall  the  building  of  grace  endure," 
The  heaven — like  it  thou  establishest  thy  faithfulness,' — 
is  hardly  a  great  improvement  on  the  traditional  text.] 

7  f.  M  D"'QIi'.  But  we  expect  either  a  class-name  or  an  ethnic. 
Dn^DH  would  be  a  good  ||  to  D^ti^lp,  but  is  too  far  removed  from 
W12iV-  '\D,  however,  has  sometimes  arisen  out  of  [D^]T'^?J7^2ti'^  and 
l£;"7p  is  often  miswritten  for  ^£!^2■  mil''  might  stand,  but  the  occurrence 
of  "^  twice  over  in  the  next  couplet  makes  us  doubt  its  correctness. 
Sometimes  it  is  a  fragment  of  Q''t'hj;;3n")\  and  that  is  probably  the  case 
here.  Thus  we  have  two  variants,  "\£)'^  and  'n~V  ;  the  latter  is  to  be 
preferred  (two  beats).  Read  (as  /.  7)— 'Tj"'J<j':»3  ':5J<^'::2L:'^2  ^^11"%  and  in 
/.  8,  for  WV1\)  read  W'^'^2. 

9  f .  M  pnti^3,  'a  poetic  sing,  for  the  already  in  itself  poetic  Dpnti' 
(Del.).  Surely  not.  Both  here  and  in  v.  38  'pUV  comes  from  ^13 . 
M  npT.  Read  Ulp^.-  ^  Q''^^*  '^^3.  Read  ':5NVorn"'  "'JIl^  (see 
crit.  note  on  xxix.  i). 

II  f.  M  D^Z^lp  nD3.  Read  Dt^DI  -iT-i'StZ-— M  HZl,  adverb.? 
G  yiiyas.  Read  KIH  3"],  Gr.,  Bii.— I^f  TTnip.  Read  D'^N^DIi'^  (see 
on  Ixxvi.  12). 


PSALM    LXXXIX. —  I.  67 

13-16.  The  material  is  scanty  for  a  quatrain.  In  /.  13  insert  ^J^^<. 
In  /.  15  ]'Dn  (followed  by  Pasek)  is  an  Aramaiziny  an.  Xey.,  and  very 
suspicious  (but  see  Del.,  and  cp.  "jbrT  Am.  ii.  9;  not  correct  in  Is.  i.  31). 
The  neighbourhood  of  'Jl^i^  suggests  "^IDH  (so  Bi.).  ']'"m2""2D  should 
be  DvNj^I^li'^^  ;  cp.  /.  12.  This  suggests  that  n\  just  before,  should  be 
D^/^J/'2^"^^^.  But  this  4th  stanza,  including  lines  i  and  2.  is  uncertain. 
G's  8vvaTos  el,  Kvpif,  is  no  real  reading. 

18.  M  Kii:r3.  Read  probably  jllN'^^/a  (Gunkel).  Gr.  pi^l^a ; 
Herz,  ]ii<}^1.  G  Koi  t6u  (or  tov  8e)  adXov. — M  DFTBIi^J^-  G  7rpavvets= 
DpTlIi'D  ?'    Better  to  read  Dl^BDJH-     Cp.  on  Ixv.  8.  * 

19  f.      M  3n"l    7'?niD.       Why    '^trtD  ?       Experience  too  warns    us 

-    T  T  T  V 

to  distrust  ^ilH   (title  of  Egypt).      See  on  Ixxxvii.  4,  Ezek.  xxxi.   17  f. 

Read— [ani]  '^S^ujn^^,  r^n'22  ;    nn~)  is  a  variant  to  'niV—  M  I^I^B. 

Read  probably  r\i-\B  (Ix.  3).  ' 
T  :  -T 

21  f.  M  gives  a  sense  which  in  any  other  context  would  be  satis- 
factory. Here,  however,  we  do  not  expect  generalities  about  God's 
universal  lordship.  The  case  of  Ixxiv.  16  f,  xcv.  4  f ,  is  exactly  parallel. 
Read— 

T    :  - :  T  - .  -  ••. 

22  f.  In  this  context  ]li)"i  and  yo"*  (G,  however,  daXdaaas  or -av  = 
Q\^''  or  □■•)  should  be  N.  Arabian  districts,  and  this  consideration  also 

T 

determines  the  reference  of  112/1  and  P/'DIPF,  if  both  these  words  are 
correctly  read.  But  how  can  they  be  right  .'*  It  is  usual  to  suppose  that 
Tabor  represents  the  west,  and  Hermon  the  east  (so  01..  Del.,  Cooke  in 
Enc.  Bib.,  'Tabor');  J.  P.  Peters,  however,  takes  Tabor  to  mean  the 
south,  and  Hermon  the  north.  These  views  imply  that  Palestine,  and 
not  N.  Arabia,  is  referred  to.  But  apart  from  this,  how  can  Tabor, 
which  is  in  the  north-central  district  of  Palestine,  be  used  for  one  of  the 
four  quarters,  and  even  coupled  with  Mt.  Hermon?  (It  is  not  in  itself 
a  high  mountain,  though  it  may  strike  us  as  such  as  Me  approach  it  from 
the  south;  Tabor,  2018  ft.;  Hermon,  9050).  113/1,  as  perhaps  in 
Jer.  xlvi.  18,  and  as  "II^lD  in  Ezek.  xxxviii.  12,  should  be  jUIin")- 
pSirr  too  may  stand  as  a  Negeb  name  (a  popular  corruption  of 
^N;::!!")'').— M  IJJi;  "^lyij^..  How  can  this  be  ^  The  phrase  belongs 
to  Israel,  not  to  natural  objects  like  mountains.  Nor  is  a  good 
parallelism  produced.  Read  (comparing  QJIi'  in  Ix.  8,  "]li^D  in  cxx.  5) 
I'lDH    DI^DI-     'Rimmon'  is  a  Xegcb  name. 

25.     M  yy\\.     Read  ITy.— M  D^^-     Read  tjJSX'  (Ges.). 

29.     M  ninir^.     Read  TTj-ij^-i''  .      TTjTiijI  is  less  probable. 

T        :  '  V  T    :•  '  V  T 


68  THE    PSALMS. 

31  f.  M  Ty;;2^3-  Read  probably  ?J''':i>^^*:52l  (cp.  on  cxxxviii.  2). — 
M  T0T1V  Pafailelism  requires  ^22'y'y  So  Ba.  ;  Gr,  ^j'lV  Insert 
mn^  (metre). 

33  f.  Read  probably  1^!;l»:::T  ^^nnj^3j"1""'3-— Kr.  DTin  is  better 
than  Kt.  Dnjl  (cp.  7'.  25<5i).     Tajiparently  reads  D31p. 

35  f.  M  and  G  both  presuppose  an  impossible  text  (cp.  Ba.).  To 
take  the  initial  ^  in  mn^*?  as  asseverative  (Grimme,  OLZ,  June,  1899, 
col.  195,  Wellh.)  is  farfetched;  on  Eccles.  ix.  4,  see  Siegfried,  but  also 
Haupt,  in  Oriental  Studies  {V>o%\.ox\^  1894),  p.  264,  n.  3.     Read  probably — 

^j'?   n:i3D   '?^<D^-l^   ^3 

T       T  :-  •  ••::-: 


PSALM  LXXXIX.— 2. 

1  RiiMETERS.  A  poetic  version  of  the  promises  to  David  and  his  house  in  2  Sam. 
vii.  8  ff.,  which  serves  to  point  the  contrast  of  present  calamity  and  distress.  The 
very  people  which  the  ancient  revelation  mentioned  as  the  destined  subject  of 
David  and  his  house  now  tyrannizes  over  the  heir  of  the  promises,  viz.  pious 
Israel.  The  host  of  Israel,  which,  according  to  another  psalmist  (xviii.  38 — 43), 
was  to  put  the  armies  of  the  aliens  to  flight,  has  been  discomfited  ;  Israel  is  no 
longer  an  imperial  power,  but  a  mark  for  the  insults  of  his  neighbours.  Where  is 
God's  old  lovingkindness  ? — Here,  as  elsewhere,  the  question  arises.  Does  the 
poet  throw  himself  back  imaginatively  into  the  time  of  the  fall  of  the  kingdom,  or 
does  he  refer  to  some  almost  forgotten  episode  in  the  later  period  ?  We  need  not 
embarrass  ourselves  with  finding  out  some  one  who  could  be  called  Vahwe's 
anointed,  whether  Jehoiachin  (Sellin),  or  Zerubbabel  (Sellin,  formerly),  or 
Sheshbazzar  (Winckler,  virtually) ;  for  IH^Ii'O  (j'^'-  39,  52)  is  most  probably 
corrupt.  It  is  possible,  however,  that  there  was  a  temporary  revival  of  the  Jewish 
nationality,  and  that  the  occasion  of  Ps.  lxxxix.(-J  is  the  disappointment  of  the 
hopes  excited  by  this  short-lived  renascence.  The  psalm  may  be  grouped  with 
xliv.'2)  and  Ixxx.     Cp.  introd.  to  Ps.  Ixxx. 

I      1  '^'  -'•  "^^  *  20 

>;:  *  -A-  * 

I  have  sent  help  to  a  hero, 

I  have  caused  to  triumph  a  3'oung  warrior  from  the  people : 

I  have  found  David  my  servant,  21 

From  Jeshimon-kadesh  I  have  drawn  him, 
Whose  hand  shall  make  peoples  bow  down,  22 

Yea,  his  arm  shall  wound  them  ; 

The  Arabian  shall  not  oppress  him,  23 

10  The  son  of  Jerahmeel  shall  not  afflict  him  ; 

I  will  shatter  his  foes  before  him,  24 

And  smite  down  those  that  hate  him  ; 

1  Then  thou  spakesl  in  a  vision  |  To  thy  pious  ones,  and  saidst. 


PSALM     LXXXIX. — 2.  69 

My  faithfulness  and  lovingkindness  shall  be  beside  him,         25 
Through  my  name  shall  his  horn  become  high  ; 
I  will  lay  his  hand  on  Yaman,  26 

His  right  hand  on  the  streams. 

He  shall  call  upon  me,  '  Thou  art  my  father,  27 

My  God,  my  rock  of  deliverance  ' ; 

I  also  will  make  him  my  firstborn,  28 

20  Sovereign  among  earth's  kings. 

My  kindness  will  I  keep  for  him  for  ever,  29 

My  covenant  shall  be  stedfast  towards  him  : 
His  offspring  will  I  make  eternal,  .  30 

His  throne  as  the  days  of  heaven. 

If  his  sons  forsake  my  law,  31 

And  walk  not  in  mine  ordinances. 

If  they  profane  my  statutes,  32 

And  keep  not  my  commandments, 

I  will  punish  their  transgression  with  the  rod,  33 

30  Their  offence  with  strokes  ; 

But  my  lovingkindness  I  will  not  withdraw  from  him,  34 

Nor  will  I  become  false  to  my  troth  : 

My  covenant  I  will  not  profane,  35 

Nor  alter  what  has  passed  my  lips  ; 

One  thing  I  have  sworn  by  my  holiness,  36 

1  will  never  become  faithless  to  David  : 

His  offspring  shall  endure  for  ever,  37 

And  his  throne  as  the  sun  before  me  : 

The  Jerahmeelites  shall  bow  down  unto  him,  38 

40  Cush  and  Ammon  shall  serve  him. 

But  now  thou  hast  spurned  and  rejected,  39 

Thou  hast  vented  thy  fury  on  thy  loyal  one ; 
Thou  hast  profaned  the  glory  of  thy  servant,  40 

His  diadem  thou  hast  hurled  to  the  ground. 

Thou  hast  broken  down  all  his  fences,  41 

Thou  hast  brought  his  fortresses  to  ruin  : 
All  that  pass  along  the  road  lay  him  waste,  42 

He  is  a  mark  for  the  insults  of  his  neighbours. 


70 


THE    PSALMS. 


Thou  hast  Hfted  up  the  right  hand  of  his  foes,  43 

50  Thou  hast  made  all  his  enemies  to  rejoice  ; 

Yea,  thou  turnest  his  host  backward,  44 

And  hast  not  held  him  up  in  the  battle. 

Thou  hast  removed  his  glorious  sceptre,  45 

And  hurled  his  throne  to  the  ground  ; 

Thou  hast  made  him  drunken  with  wine  that  bewilders,        46 
Thou  hast  covered  him  with  shame.  ^ 

Where  are  th}'  lovingkindnesses,  O  Lord!  50 

Which  thou  didst  swear  unto  David  in  th}'  faithfulness  ? 
O  remember  the  contumelies  of  the  Arabians,  51  (52) 

•Forget  not  the  insults  of  the  Jerahmeelites.- 

Subscription  to  Book  III. 
Blessed  be  Yahwe  for  evermore.     Amen  and  Amen. 


1-4.  The  opening  words,  though 
of  doubtful  origin,  state  quite  correctly 
that  what  follows  is  based  on  2  S.  vii. 
8-16.      PTH;    so   in    i    Ch.    vii.    15; 

ivjn  in  2  s.  vii.  17.  -nna  =  n^j, 

as  Ixxviii.  31,  63,  Am.  iv.  10.  D^~in , 
to  '  cause  to  triumph,'  cp.  QTI ,  Ivii.  6, 
12.     Note  ~1T>*,  '  help'  =  '  victory.' 

6.     From      Jesbliuon  -  kadesli, 

i.e.  from  the  wilderness  vvhere  David 
wandered  before  the  change  in  his 
fortunes.  Cp.  i  S.  xiv.  i,  '  Behold, 
David  is  in  tlie  wilderness  of  En-gedi ' 
(rather  '  En-kadcsh').  See  crit.  note. 
—  7  f  Cp.  xviii.  39. 

15  f.  See  on  Ixxii.  8.  The  streams 
are  presumably  the  '  wadys '  of  the 
Negeb.  The  term  is  conventional  ; 
cp.'  /T)D  "inj  (Penith  =  Ephrath). 

19  f.  My  firstborn.  Israel 
(Ex.  iv.  22)  or  Ephraim  (Jer.  xxxi.  9) 
is    called    Yahwe's    '  firstborn    son.' — 

Sovereign  ("JV7y).  Israel  too  is  called 
^elyon,  Dt.  xxvi.  19,  xxviii.  i  in  relation 


to  the  goy'tm,  or  '  nations.' — 24.  As  the 
days  of  heaven.  So  Dt.  xi.  21  (of  the 
duration  of  Israel). 

35.  One  tblng-,  nflK ,  indicat- 
ing the  solemnity  of  the  statement. 
Cp.  l.xii.  12.  So  Del.,  Duhm,  &c. 
Bii.  prefers  '  once ' ;  G  a.TTaL\. 

41.  Here  begins  the  psalmist's 
complaint  of  the  non-fulfilment  of 
Yahwe's  promises. — 42.  Thy  loyal  one, 
i.e.  pious  Israel.  The  reference  of 
'thine  anointed'  (so  M)  is  disputed. 
According  to  Hitzig,  the  Jewish  people 
is  meant.  Certainly  the  people  must 
Ije  referred  to  in  all  those  passages 
which  speak  of  long-continued  suffer- 
ings. Moreover,  in  v.  51  we  have 
'  tliy  servants,'  and  vc.  41  f  are  clearly 
based  on  Ixxx.  13,  and  refer  to  the 
jieople.  It  is  quite  possible  for  an 
imperial  people,  such  as  Israel,  ideally, 
was,  to  be  described  as  having  a 
'  diadem,'  a  '  sceptre,'  and  a  '  throne  ' 
(cp.  Isa.  Iv.  3),  and  it  would  be  only  a 
step  farther  to  call  this  people  Yahwe's 
'anointed.'  Still  it  is  very  doubtful 
whether    this    last    step    was   actually 


'  How  long  wilt  thou  hide  thy  lovingkindness  ?  |  +how  long+  shall  thy  wrath 
imrn  like  fire?  ||  (v.  47). 

-  O  remember  the  Jerahmeelites  [Ishmaclites],  |  the  contumelies  of  all  the 
sons  of  Edom.  1!  The  contumelies  of  tiie  Jerahmeelites,  the  Ishmaelites,  the 
Asshurites.     Vv.  48,  49,  50  (part).   ||     The  Cushites  {v.  52). 


PSALM     LXXXIX. — I,  2.  7I 

taken.    The  terms  '  king  '  and  '  anointed  illusion,  and  that  the  period  of  national 

one,'    when    the    people    of   Israel   are  independenLC  seemed   to  ont  who  lan- 

refcrred  to,  both  seem  to  have  arisen  guished  under  a   foreign  yoUe  a  time 

tlirous^h  corruption.     See  on  xxviii.  8,  of  youthful    vii;our  which   mij;ht  have 

Ixxxiv.   10,  and  see  crit.  note.  lasted    on    indefinitely?     At    any  rate, 

_    J-      c-  I-  ^  ,.  the    parallel  line   does  not    f.ivour  this 

47    f.     bee   precechng   note.  —  '^K.  ■         r  .u  •> 

o  ,  '  ,       ■    ^    ,        Ml  view  of  the  poet  s  meanm". 

bee  on   Ix.  5,  and  cnt.   note.     M  has  '■  ° 

'  thou    hast  shortened  the  days  of  his  r       a        ,1     ■  .-•■on- 

youth.'     The    meaning    is    not    clear.  57  f-     An  allusion  to  2  b.  vii.  8  ff.  ; 

Can  we  say  that  there  is  here  a  pathetic       cp.  Isa.  Iv.  3/^.     "]^~TDrT ,  as  v.  2. 

Critical  Notes.  1-4.  M's  "\y\  j"l~12~I  Thi  may  contain  fragments  of 
the  true  te.xt.  "^^"T^orT  ;  so  the  Gk.  vss.  {jo'i^  oaion  aov ;  G's  v'uns  must 
be  a  corruption),  except  S',  which  has  to'is  Trpoc()r]Tais  <tov  ;  so  too  TSJ, 
Rashi,  Ibn  Ezra,  Baer,  Ginsb.  Some  MSS.  and  many  edd.,  however, 
have  the  sing,  suft'.,  which  suits  2  S.  vii.  4.  Cp.  on  xvi.  10. — In  /.  3  read 
m2J~b'h}  ")Ty  Tinii  (cp.  ''^,  -xlii.  9,  xliv.  5).  Most  (Venema,  01.,  Hu., 
Kau.,  Hal.,  Du.)  change  MG's  ITj;  into  "10  (cp.  7'.  40/^).  But  the  text- 
reading  suits  m^lJ  better. 

6.  M  Vnrrtyp  '''^Ip   ]'01^^  (cp.  Ex.  xxv.  6),  implying  that  the  king 

was  consecrated  as    a   priest;  cp.   Weinel,   ZATIV,  1S98,  p.  59.     But 

nothing  is  said  of  this  in  2  S.  vii.  8.     Most  probably  in  that  passage  (see 

Crit.  Bib.),  as  in  l.xxviii.  21  f.,  the  true  text  specifies  by  name  the  district 

or  region  from  which  David  was  taken.     Read  V;^3'^,:2    '^ID    ^V2"'::'^'0  • 

•  :   -  :  ••  T  •     • 

7.  Read  D-^y  ^"''^PO  ''"'''  "1'>^^  •  ^'s  S'BV  V2r\  is  not  fully 
justified  by  Ixxviii.  2)7-  Besides,  something  stronger  is  required. — 
8.  Read  U'ir\^r\  ^V'*^^^"^"^  ■ 

9  f.  As  Herz  remarks,  M's  S^r"'"S'?  has  very  little  sense,  whatever 
meaning  we  give  to  the  verb.  He  would  read  D'CN~J>\'7  (cp.  I  S.  xxvi. 
19),  and  thinks  that  G's  ov  Trpoa-dTjaei  implies  a  marginal  gloss  or  a  second 
rendering  of  Jl'DM  as  Pi'^Z^i^  .  which  is  represented  by  nfiua-TiSii^i  in  Ixii. 
ii,ci.  3.  '  Of  course,  the  difficulty  in  this  hypothesis  is  to  account  for 
the  third  person.'  I  agree  that  ^}  is  dittographic,  but  think  that  we  must 
read  t^il''"S'7  .  l"!.^,  too,  should  probably  be  ''2'^y_  (as  often),  and  in 
/.  10  n^lV'IZl  (so  in  2  S.  vii.  10)  should  be  '^N^HT  ]il. 

15.     M  ^^3,-     Read  IQ'H  =  '7Nronn"'2  ;  see  exeg.  no:e. 

T-  TT ; 

31.     M  T3hJ.     Read  TDS"   (01.,  Hu.,  Gr.,  Bi.,  Ba.,  &c.).     Cp.  2  S. 

•    T  •    T 

vii.  17.  I  Chr.  xvii.  13. 

39  f.  M's  D'^iy  liH*"  rr")"!!  is  an  editor's  correction  of  a  corruptly 
written  D'''?i^arn"'  V/  ^iny'- '  Cp.  on  /.  7.  The  nbu  which  closes  v.  38 
comes  from  a  fragment  of  t'NQn")''  (a  correction).  —  For  pH^'.^  IV^ 
1DNJ  read  beyond  doubt  ]byi  f^D  ^miZipv  ^P'  °"  "''•  '^-  ^'°^ 
another  suggestion  see  Jc-u'.  Rd.  Life,  p.  109  f.  Duhm  is  content  with 
reading  'jroXJ  pnii'if  I'ly^T,  'and  as  long  as  the  sky  lasts,  it  (the 
throne)  is  constant.' 


72  THE    PSALMS. 

41.  Read  nnV\  (Gr.).— 43-  ^I  Hj^Hi^J  .  Read  probably  nr^n^Q 
(and  so  in  Lam.  ii.  7),  transposin;^  this  word  and  phyJl-  2  els  Kcirapiiv 
eSojKa?,  as  if  nnilN  .  Herz,  rrjTlDl^  or  nn':'>'J  ^— ^l'  jinB.  Read 
/^"1^}^J^  ,  as  in  Isa.  xlii.  6  (see  Cri/.  Bib.). 

47.  M  ^HD'i' ;  G  dirjpTTaaav.  But  just  before,  breaking  down  and 
ruining  is  referred  to.  Read  ^Ql^n  (Ixxix.  7).  Transposition  ;  confusion 
of  ;::  and  D- 

51.  M  iinn  11^  ;  G  ri]v  Sioi]6iiav  TTjs  pOfi(f}aias  avrov.  Del.,  with 
insufficient  justification,  'the  edge  of  his  sword'  ;  Bil.,  'with  his  sword 
which  is  as  flint.'  For  ~nii,  Duhm  ~l-iJ*2 ,  Gratz  ■>i^^}  •  Both  rightly 
refer  to  xliv.  11,  but  neither  sees  that  12~)n  has  also  to  be  corrected. 
That  Gr.  should  not  have  noticed  where  "^^^^^  lies  hid  is  really  strange. 
Read  ihJQil  "linhJ .     See  xliv.  \ob,  i\a. 

T  :  T 

53.  M  i"inZ3*2  )  G  diTo  Kadapia-fjLov  avrov  (avTOv)  ;  A2  ttjv  KadapoTTjra 
avTov;  cp.  Kon.,  Sjni.,  p.  35.  Read  Slh  HZS!^  (Herz) ;  cp.  Zech.  vi.  13, 
I  Chr.  xxix.  25,  Dan.  xi.  21.  Less  easily  and  less  elegantly,  Ba.  and 
Sellin  read  iT,:2  ,113^  . 

T  •  V   - 

55  f.  M  V:2'bv  ''?3'.  .miiip.rT.  No  doubt,  God  may  be  said  to 
'  shorten  days,'  but  in  this  case  Vi!3l'7J7  is  not  a  natural  qualification.  Gr. 
proposes  V(2l'?'yi'  or  ']72i'7\D  ■  But  the  H  line  suggests  that  the  corruption 
lies  deeper.     Read  probably  r\h}?~}D  l""*^  1n"13^n  (cp.  Ix.  5).     [G'^  roi 

Bpovov  avTov  ;  G'^  XR°'^°^!  i-^-  i'^/'li^  •]  The  H/D  at  the  end  of  vv.  46  and 
49  represents  t'[N]i!3n["1^],  which  was  probably  a  marginal  correction 
belonging  to  v.  48.  [In  v.  47  read  probably  TflCTT  TTIDP. ;  cp.  on 
Ixxiv.  I,  Ixxix.  5  (xiii.  2).] 

57(^z,  59  f.  M  gives  us  these  two  lines  in  two  forms  {la.b.^v.'^i;  2  a.b. 
=  7'.  52).  The  beginning  of/.  59  is  given  nearly  correctly  in  ?'.  ^la  ;  it  is 
n-Din  h}J"-lbr.  In  V.  S2a  IDT  has  given  place  to  -)Ii»^^ ,  and  J-)[l]3"in 
has  become  13~in-  The  beginning  of  /.  60  has  to  be  recovered  from 
'pTT^^J^NIi^  in  7^  51^.  Parallelism  suggests  nyi^Jl  ^i^ ,  and  (omitting 
"•p  as  =  a  dittographed  f D)  we  can  without  violence  extract  this  from 
["•]rrn''nNi:' .  The  "yj  which  follows  '<p''112  in  v.  Sib,  and  the  DMpV  >» 
V.  S2b  both  represent  JlQ'^p  ;  see  on  vi.  8,  and  cp.  Pedes,  Anal.,  14,  28. 
(Bo.,  Bi.,  B;i.,  Kau.,  partly  agree;  see  also  ST.)  It  remains  to  find  out 
what  are  the  nouns  with  which  ngin  and  jlbT'D  are  in  construction. 
V.  51  gives  Tjn^y  and  Wtliy!  W3r\  ;  v.  52  ^"'^''iS  and  Tjn'li'i^-  'The 
contumelies  of  thy  servants'  is,  of  course,  a  possible  phrase,  but  it  is  not 
so  natural  as  '  the  contumelies  of  thine  enemies,'  or  rather  (for  D^^nP  is 
clearly  the  common  original  of  *]n3y  and  ^^2"'TN),  'of  the  Arabians.' 
If  so,  both  D^DJ.'  D^I}"!  and  ■]n"'Z'D  must  conceal  some  ethnic  or  ethnics. 
The  key  to  the  former  is  supplied  by  D^  ^3''")*2  in  xviii.  44a  ;  both  the 
groups  of  letters  compared  are  corruptions  of  D^'^N^Sm*'.     The  key  to  the 


PSALM    XC.  73 

latter  is  identical  with  the  key  to  ']2D^  in  v.  13  ;  both  words  are  most 
probably  corruptions  of  D^'^i^O  •  To  the  couplet  now  restored  7'.  48,  in 
its  true  form,  appears  to  be  a  variant,  while  v.  49,  in  its  true  form,  is  a 
variant  to  part  of  i'.  48,  and  one  word  in  ?/.  50,  viz.  D^ili^J^")!! .  or  rather, 
DmnrX  is  an  additional  gloss  on  (D"1h<)  Dli<~"'Jl"'?D  -^  Duhm  omits 
^pTt^  in  t'.  51^  as  a  late  insertion,  and  reads  D'Qy/2  2"'1~'73  ,  and  in 
V.  5i(j  ^1337  =  ^n^ti';;^  c/.  52.  'The  heels  of  thine  anointed  one' 
implies,  according  to  Duhm,  that  the  king  (Alexander  Jannieus)  is  a 
fugitive,     nbv,  like  ^M^IU  {v.  49),  is  a  fragment  of  bii)^u)TD''. 


BOOK     IV. 
PSALM  XC. 

1  RIMETERS.  Verses  1-12  are  so  difficult  that  we  may  do  well,  in  forming  a 
view  of  the  psalm,  to  start  from  verses  13-16(17).  From  these  it  is  plain  that, 
unless  the  psalm  is  made  up  of  two  distinct  poetic  fragments,  the  theme  of  the 
work  is  "S'ahwe's  painful  desertion  of  his  people  during  a  long-continued  national 
misfortune  (cp.  Olsh.,  Wellh.).  It  is,  therefore,  plain  that  for  the  psalm  in  its 
present  state  a  later  editor  must  be  held  responsible.  The  actual  incoherence  is 
indeed  very  great.  The  everlastingness  of  God  is  the  subject  of  it'.  i,  2,  4  ;  the 
perishableness  of  men  that  of  z<v.  3  and  5a  ;  the  shortness  of  human  life  that  of 
vv.  5/',  6,  10,  12.  In  z'v.  7-9  the  misfortunes  of  the  nation  are  explained  as  a 
proof  of  the  divine  anger,  and  though  this  is  not  directly  stated,  we  are  allowed  to 
infer  from  the  concatenation  of  the  verses  that  the  shortness  of  life  itself  arises 
from  the  divine  anger  at  sin.  What  religious  poet  would  have  written  thus  ? 
Neither  as  a  contemplation  of  the  nature  of  God  and  of  man,  nor  as  an  appeal  to 
Yahwe  cfe  profiindis,  can  Ps.  xc.  be  pronounced  a  satisfactory  poem ;  and  if  we 
look  at  Ps.  xxxix.  (which  in  its  present  form  has  considerable  resemblance  to 
Ps.  XC,  but  in  the  light  of  criticism  becomes  a  composite  poem,  in  which  the 
original  part  has  been  both  manipulated  and,  in  its  tendency,  modified  by  the 
alterations  and  additions  of  an  editor)  we  shall  see  that  the  solution  of  the  problem 
here  proposed  is  by  no  means  strange  or  unparalleled.  (Cp.  also  onlxxxix.  48f).  The 
solution  referred  to  is  that  the  original  psalm  had  a  definite  historical  background. 
It  was  an  appeal  of  oppressed  Israel  to  Yahwe  for  help  and  (see  6'.  15)  compensation, 
based  on  the  close  relation  between  itself  and  its  God.  The  greatness  of  the 
Jerahmeelites  may  be  of  ancient  origin,  but  the  protection  of  Israel  by  Yahwe  is 
still  older.  Much  of  the  text,  however,  became  illegible,  and  much  perhaps  failed 
to  satisfy  the  editor,  who,  therefore,  recast  a  large  part  of  it  so  as  to  convey  a  more 
permanently  valuable  message.  The  rewritten  portion  contains  vv.  1-12,  but 
■w.  1-4  can  with  considerable  probability  be  restored  to  their  original  form. 

The  following  are  the  chief  points  of  contact  between  this  psalm  and  other 
literary  works  : — 

Line  I  :  TJ^;^  .  PJ^i^ ,   '  shelter,  fortress,'   xxvii.   I,   xxviii.   8  (?),   xxxi.  3,   5, 
xxxvii.  39,  xliii.  2,  Ixxi.  3  (c.t.),  xci.  9  (c.t.),  Deut.  xxxiii.  27  (c.t.). 

1    Vv.  48  f.  should  run  thus  (cp.  the  parallel  corrections  of  corruptly  written 
ethnics  elsewhere,  e.g.  in  xxxix.  5), — 

DHSJ  "^:n~'7D  j-i3"in 

As  in  Ps.  xxxix.,  G  presupposes  an  already  corrupt  text. 


74  THE    PSALMS. 

Line  2  :  "l'71  "1*77,  see  especially  Ixxxix.  2. 

3  :  Antiiiuity  of  Jerahmeel,   cp.    Num.    xxiv.    7,   20(i  [in  -'.  8,  w  D^<"^ 

is  a  corruption  of  t'MiwrT~l\  parallel  to  D'ljii'2]. 
7  f . :  Cp.  xciv.  4  f.,  and  other  parallels  (crit.  note  on  //.  1-8,  end). 
9  f. :    Cp.  xxxvii.  2,  ciii.  15  f.,  and  especially  Isa.   Ixiv.   5   [6],  'we  all 

fade  as  leaves.' 
12  :  7n3J    of  anguish  such  as  precedes  death;    cp.  vi.  3  f.,  11,  xxx.  8, 

civ.  29,  lie. 
14-16  :  See  crit.  notes. 

17-20:  Cp.  Gen.  xlvii.  9,  Job  ix.  25  f.,  Isa.  xxxv.  10. 
22  :  Cp.  Joel  ii.   11^. — 25.  Cp.  vi.  4,  5,  xciv.  3. — 26.  Cp.  Dt.  xxxii.  36, 

Ex.  xxxii.  12. 
27  :  "lp3Zl ;  cp.  xxx.  6,  xlvi.  6,  cxliii.  8  (not  xlix.  15). 

29:  j"li*3^_  (for  "'Q]'),  again  only   Dt.  xxxii.   7  (as  here,   beside  jHIJ'!' , 

assonance,  therefore). 
31:  7Pi3 ,  of  Yahwe's  historical  'working'  for   his  people,  as  xcii.  5, 
xcv.  9,  Ixxviii.  13,  cp.  xliv.  2. 

Prayer.     Of  the  Jsh?nae/Ues  \_Jerahmeelites\ .  r 

I       O  Lord  !  thou  wast  our  stronghold, 
Our  God  age  after  age,' 

Before  thou  didst  exalt  Jerahmeel,  2 

And  didst  magnify  Missur  and  Ishmael. 

Mayest  thou  put  Ishmael  to  flight,  3 

And  say,  Be  disappointed,  ye  sons  of  Edom  ! 
For  the  Jerahmeelites  tread  thy  people  down,  4 

The  Ishmaelites,  the  Arabians,  and  the  Misrites. 

Editorial  (Jl.  Q-22). 

II  Like  grass  which  in  the  morning  sprouts,  5,  6 

10     But  in  the  evening  fades  and  withers, 

So  through  thine  anger  we  perish,  7 

Through  thine  indignation  we  are  affrighted. 

Thou  hast  set  our  iniquities  before  thee,  8 

Our  treason  in  front  of  thy  countenance  ; 
Our  doings  are  like  spiders'  webs,  9 

Our  works  have  been  crushed  like  locusts. 

The  days  of  our  pilgrimage  have  fled,  10 

Our  years  [have  been  swifter]  than  eagles, 
They  have  fled  through  trouble  and  calamity, 
20     F()r  kindness  and  piety  are  at  an  end. 

'  Before  the  mountains  were  brought  forth, 
And  thou  hadst  accomplished  the  works  of  the  earth  (z'.  ia). 


30 


PSALM    XC.  75 

Who  can  withstand  the  violence  of  thine^anger,  ii 

Or  abide  the  fierceness  of  thy  fury  ? 

Show  the  Jerahmeehtes  their  iniquities,  12 

Yea,  punish  the  sons  of  Jerahmeel. 

Turn  hither,  O  Yahwe  !  how  long  ?  1 3 

Relent  over  thy  servants. 

Satisfy  us  early  with  thy  kindness,  14 

That  all  our  days  we  may  shout  with  gladness. 

Make  us  glad  as  many  days  as  thou  hast  afBicted  us,  15 

As  many  years  as  we  have  seen  misery  : 

Let  thy  doing  appear  to  thy  servants,  16 

And  thy  magnificence  to  their  [children's]  children. 

Liturgical  Appendix. 

Let  thy  brightness,  O  Yahwe  !  be  +seen+  over  us,  17 

The  work  of  our  hands  do  thou  establish. 


3  f.     Before  thou  didst  exalt, 

&c.  'Jerahmeel,'  in  the  haze  of  tradi- 
tion, took  vast  proportions  to  the 
Israehtes.  Cp.  Num.  xxiv.  7,  '  his 
king  shall  be  higher  than  Agag  ' ;  v.  20, 
'  Anialek  was  the  first  of  the  nations  ' 
(see  also  on  Am.  vi.  i).     Cp.  introd. 

5.  One's  impression  is  that  the  N. 
Arabians  had  combined  to  overpower 
and  oppress  Israel  (cp.  Ixxiv.,  Ixxxiii., 
xciv.).  It  is  the  purpose  of  destroying 
Yahwe's  people  which  tiiose  who  sang 
these  words  prayed  might  be  'dis- 
appointed.' 

9.  There  is  a  marked  change  in 
the  subject,  whatever. interpretation  we 
put  upon  vv.  1-4.  ^"^n^j  Del.  renders 
'sprouts  again.'  This  is  strictly  correct, 
but  the  emphasis  is  not  on  the  succes- 
sion of  generati(jns,  but  on  the  brevity 
of  Israel's  life  as  a  community.  Pro- 
bably the  writer  thinks,  not  of  j\b:)ses 
and  the  Exodus,  but  of  a  more  recent 
foundation  (cp.  v.  \Tb).  He  is  only  a 
*  supplementer,'  but  he  sincerely  feels 


the  much-loved  commonplaces  which 
he  once  more  repeats  to  edify  his 
people. 

19  f.  The  '  trouble  and  calamity' 
spoken  of  are  the  result  of  the  prevail- 
ing cruelty  and  impiety. 

21-24.  The  N.  Arabians  may  be 
Yahwe's  agents,  but  they  are  none  the 
less  transgressors  of  his  fundamental 
laws,  and  have  exceeded  the  limits  of 
their  commission  (cp.  Dt.  xxxii.  36, 
Isa.  xlvii.  6,  li.  23). 

29  f.  Yahwe  being  a  '  God  of  justice  ' 
(Isa.  XXX.  18),  a  proportion  can  be 
expected  between  happiness  and  misery; 
at  any  rate,  the  latter  should  not  exceed 
the  former,  for  the  Israelites  are  Yahwe's 
'  servants.' 

31  f.  t'VS ;  see  introd.— nirr. 
The  glory  of  Yahwe's  self-manifestation. 
— 34.  The  work  of  our  hands,  i.e.  the 
full  establishment  of  a  law-obeying, 
righteous  community. 


Critical  Notes.  Title.  r\'^'d^  has  not  been  adequately  accounted 
for.  There  is  so  little  plausibility  in  the  view  that  Ps.  xc.  has  Mosaic 
authorship  (see  Hupf.-Now.),  that  one  is  bound  to  look  farther  for  an 
explanation.  Saadya  {ap.  Neubauer,  Stiidia  Biblica,  ii.,  12)  understood 
T\^r:>  as=:ni:'*J   "^izb  (see  I  Chr.  xxiii.  14.  cp.  '"inS"'?  in  Chr.=  X  -JQ) 


76  THE    PSALMS. 

i.e.  the  psalm  was  to  be  sung  by  the  bne  Most;,  who  were  at  the  king's 

court.     It  is  presumable,  however,  that  the  true  title  was  one  of  those 

current   elsewhere   in   the  Psalter,  and  if  so,   considering   the   title   of 

Ps.  Ixxxix.,  and  remembering   numerous  analogous   corruptions  in   the 

titles,  it  seems    not   impossible  that  Q^n'7J«}n"Ii'^N  may  be  an  editor's 

conjectural  emendation  of  a  corrupt  form  of  the  words  'mTJ^n   lD\l'? . 

•  •    t:  V  T       T    .. : 

TW*2r>     may   be    another   such  emendation  of   the  corrupt    Vki'Dl    or 

"Wt^"!,  the  original  of  which  was  QVyi^T  =  ' marked '  (see  Enc.  Bib., 
col.  3945).  More  probably,  however,  -q)^)^  TVV'l^  =  bii^f^^'^,  and 
DTl'^i^n  =  biSOHT.     Cp.  on  title  of  Ps.  xcii. 

1-8.  The  commentators  have  naturally  found  this  passage  {vz/.  1-4) 
in  M  (with  which  G  in  the  main  agrees)  very  difficult.  In  vv.  i,  2  two 
ideas  seem  to  be  interwoven,  to  the  great  detriment  of  the  sense, 
viz.  the  close  relation  between  Israel  and  its  God,  and  the  eternity  of 
Yahwe.  In  v.  3  we  apparently  have  a  statement  of  the  perishableness 
of  man,  based  on  Gen.  iii.  19.  but  the  phraseology  is  very  strange,  and 
V.  2>b  in  particular  is  susceptible  of  more  than  one  interpretation.  V.  4 
does  not  continue  this  subject,  but  goes  back  to  that  of  the  divine 
eternity,  which  it  illustrates  by  two  figures,  where  one  (as  Duhm  justly 
remarks)  would  have  been  more  effective.  The  position  of  Ps.  xc. 
between  Pi.  Ixxxix.  and  xci.,  xcii.,  xciv.,  leads  us  to  suppose  that  Ps.  xc. 
is  by  no  means  such  a  vague  composition  as  it  may  appear.  The 
original  text  must  have  contained  references  to  special  historical  circum- 
stances, and  instead  of  following  Duhm,  who  omits  the  words  in  f.  i 
concerning  Yahwe's  relation  to  Israel,  we  should  rather  omit  those  in 
V.  2  concerning  the  eternity  of  Yahwe.  It  is  noteworthy  that  the 
distich  in  z'.  2a  suggests  a  reminiscence  of  Prov.  viii.  25  f.,  and  that 
it  would  be  more  appropriate  in  a  description  of  the  antiquity  of  the 
divine  Wisdom  than  in  a  hymn  on  the  eternity  of  the  divine  Creator;  for, 
since  both  the  mountains  and  the  earth  in  general  were  created  by 
Yahwe,  it  is  a  poor  thing  to  say  that  before  anything  had  been  created 
the  Lord  was.  This  suggests  that  the  distich  referred  to  was  not  a  free 
composition  of  the  editor,  but  based  upon  genuine  material  which  had 
become  indistinct  and  obscure.  Can  we  detect  the  underlying  genuine 
words  ?  We  have  a  right  to  be  hopeful,  because  in  vv.  zb,  3,  and  4, 
there  are  several  words  which,  as  experience  shows,  are  very  likely 
to  be  corruptions  of  ethnic  names.  These  words  are  {a)  d'pIPD,  which 
in  Gen.  vi.  4,  i  S.  xxvii.  8,  Isa.  Ixiii.  19,  Ezek.  xxvi.  20,  Alic.  v.  i,  is  a 
corruption  of  [Q"']':'X:jn~l'' ;  {b)  Dl^<,  which  can  be  as  well  Ql^<  as 
Dll^  (cp.  on  Ixxxix.  48)  ;  (t)  ':'iaj~liV},  which  in  Mic.  ii.  8  (see  also  on 
I  S.  iv.  7)  is  a  corruption  of  '^Kr^m'*;  [d)  ")^^\  which  may  be 
illustrated  by  D"*"!!!;/*  =  D'Hny  in  Jer.  xxii.  20,  and  elsewhere  ; 
{e)  mT^i:;^,  which  is  not  far  from  QnJiD;  and  (/)  n'?^'?,  which  in 
xci.  5  (cp.  xvi.  10)  comes  from  '^hJ^mV  The  only  solution  possible 
under  these  circumstances  now  comes  into  view.  We  must  read  //.  3 
and  4  thus, — 


PSALM    XC.  77 

Y"1^}  for  "ITjiO,  as  Ixxvi.  13,  &c.,  cp.  Ixxxiii.  8  (l^ii).  b2r\  for  "i:;"'  ; 
cp.  73^I1j~1N  ,  I  K.  xvi.  31,  for  Ahab's  wife  was  really  a  Misrite  (see 
Cri/.  Bib.).  7inil  or  ^J^DO  (Josh.  xix.  4,  i  S.  xxx.  27)  is  less  probable ; 
indeed,  this  name  itself  may  per/iaps  come  from  7Nr!!3Ii'^-  We  are  now 
free  not  only  from  the  awkward  "YV)''  and  7^^'^^^ ,  but  also  from  the 
impossible  '^^Pi)  V"'^^  •  (^^  Prov.  viii.  31  read  l^ilhJ  DD^^*?^  ;  on 
Job  xxxviii.  12,  see  Duhm.)  We  also  understand  the  propriety  of  the 
Pasek  in  t'.  2n. 

The  closing  words  of  7'.  2  must  have  grown  out  of  DT'lJ/*i2 ,  which 
is  a  corrupt  dittogram  of  7j^Dm^  (or  perhaps  a  corruption  of  a 
marginal  correction) ;  they  may  be  disregarded.  The  metre  of  lines 
3  and  4  is  now  perfect.  But  what  of  lines  1  and  2  ?  Since  X\y'2  does 
not  mean  'refuge,'  Houb.  long  ago  proposed  ]'\'^'!2  (so  read  in  Ixxi.  3, 
xci.  9).  But  this  is  not  enough.  To  preserve  metre  and  parallelism, 
read — 

^\p^'i^   i>iy^   ^:)7S' 

T    -  "•:  T  T       -: 

111   "I'm   ^yph^ 

T  :  ••     v: 

We  now  pass  on  to  lines  5-8.  '2.'^r\  clearly  ought  to  have  a  jussive 
force.  V^1'i^  is  too  vague,  nor  can  J^3T"Ij7  ('unto  atoms,'  Driver)  be 
safely  admitted.  "1^  '^^1'ik  is  more  than  probably  ^MPQti^''  (cp.  on 
Ivi.  2,  Jer.  xvii.   16),  while    SDT  may  possibly  have    come  from  linj^ 

T 

(cp.  ix.  4,  Ivi.  10),  and  D~It<  should  no  doubt  be  read  D"!}"?-  Lines  5 
and  6  should  therefore  run  thus, — 

T  ••   T    :    •  ••    T 

Lines  7  and  8  are  more  difficult.  The  subtlety  of  the  first  comparison 
in  M  may  be  admitted,  but,  as  we  have  seen,  there  is  a  second  less 
effective  one,  and  even  as  the  last  stands  one  is  surprised  at  a  reference 
to  God's  superiority  to  the  illusion  of  time  at  this  point.  7T0nh}  DVD 
may  be  our  starting-point;  why  the  superfluous  DV  ?  The  probability  is 
that  c^7hs  and  QVD  (D  =  D »  D  =  H)  are  both  corrupt  fragments  of 
D'''7J<Qm^ ,  that  U^y^  represents  a  verb  (take  over  "2. ,  and  read  D^lif3D), 
and  that  y^y  should  be  Tjpj;  ;  also  that  ""D  '7^^n^<  and  n>'?2 
are  corrupt  repetitions  of  Dv^il^m\  and  that  12^  ^"^"^^  mVjrhJ 
represent  DTl"!!^  and  D^Hl^D  respectively.  We  may  account  similarly 
for  VH"'  r\}U;  D/I^IT  in  7'.  5  (plausible  as  Herz's  Jl^l-ID  for  'IT 
certainly  is)  ;  it  represents  not  improbably  Q'''^N3,^'2II^*  D^liiltS,  two 
corrupt  repetitions  or  corrections.     Read,  therefore,  as  //.  7,  8, — 

"^Bv  D''t22  D'bi^r2r\y''2 


78  THE    PSALMS. 

and  compare  the  parallel  lists  in  Ixxxiii.  6  8,  and  perhaps  in  Iv.  11  f.,  16, 
Ivi.  7  f.,  Ixiii.  II  f.,  xciv.  20. 

gfif.  A  double  reading-  follows:  («)  =]'?n''  ')"^nD  "^^22,  (/')  ipni 
^'^m  Y^^^  •  ('')  ^^  apparently  correct,  except  that  T'l^nD  should  open 
the  clause. — M  77ir^\  surely  not  'completes  fading'  (a  'direct-causative' 
sense),  as  Kon.,  §  324  d3.  Read  probably  "^^^  (xxxvii.  2)  ;  f  was  ditto- 
graphed.     Gr.,  bia^ .— M  ^3  .     Read  ]3  . 

14.  M  •IJ'Jj'^i^,  'our  youthful  age'.?  Read  ^^h^p  (cp.  Isa.  Ixiv.  4, 
SBOT),  with'Gr.,  Hcrz.— M  IIN^'?  ;  G  ds  (pconaiJLnv.  Vague.  Read 
bi^r^b  (Num.  xii.  38). 

15.  M  TTj-nnyn   -133   ^J"';:^"'"':'^  ■'3.      ^JD   at   any    rate   is   wrong; 

'   V     T:    V  :      .        T  "T         T         •  T 

Dl^n    (133  (Jer.  vii.  4)  is  possible,  but  hardly  D^'^''^  1J3,  metaphorically. 

-  T  T  .  T  -  T 

The  imperfect  parallelism  suggests  corruption  ;  there  ought  to  be  a 
figure  in  both  lines.  L.  16  {v.  gd)  is  represented  in  G  by  e^eXlnofifv  to. 
err;  rj^ojv  cos  dpdxi'r]v  efJ-eXerav.  In  ws  dp.  and  e/ifX.  GrJitz  finds  a  double 
rendering  of  njil'I^D  •  This  is  a  mistake,  ws  dp.  (so  also  S)  is  a  relic 
of  the  reading  ^''33^  ''"I'lpS  (Isa.  lix.  5),  and  this  should  be  read  for 
inn2)^2  bj  O  in  /.  15  ;*cp.  Q''13i:?  O  in  Hos.  viii.  6,  which,  as 
Ruben,  Cri't  Remarks.,  p.  15,  shows,  following  E'  {TTapanXrja-ias  tw  opd;^i'jjf 
tVrw),  should  be  '3^  mpS  .  The  final  D  is  dittographic.  I^''^''  should 
be  ^y''\D}?D  J  and  1^3  ,  which  springs  from  ')2'2 ,  represents  the  same 
word  (a  dittogram). — Let  us  now  leave  the  unfortunate  spider  (see  on 
cxl.  4,  and  Merx  and  Duhm  on  Job  xxvii.  iS),  and  pass  on  to  /.  16. 

16.  M  n:in"ir^3  ^2''2t  ^Tb2-     n:)n"i;23,  properly  'like  a  rumbling, 

;  "  T 

groaning,  moaning'  (see  BDB).     This  is  supposed  to  mean  '  like  a  sigh,' 

or  (01.,  We.)  'like  a  thought.'     G  ep-eXeTwu  {?  ws  6  peXfTwv)  ;  J  siciit  scr- 

monem  loquens  (njH?).     Again  corruption  ;  and  since  Herz's  nprr^'^Dp 

is  too  obscure,  and  we  know  how  often  the  scribes  split  a  word  into  two 

parts  and  put  the  second  part  first,  and  we  need  a  suitable  parallel  to  the 

spider,  we  may  undoubtingly  read  D^3nn3  •     Cp.  Isa.  xl.  22,  Num.  xiii.  ^i 

(]3  for  □"'3^)1 ;  see  £';/(:. />V(^.,  '  Locust ') ;  see  also  on  xxxvii.  41.     IJ^'PD 

i«  also  wrong  ;  men  do  not  bring  years  to  an  end ;  years  fly  by  necessity. 

Parallelism    suggests    1J'''?3,'_3 .       For     'S^'W    (very    suspicious    beside 

IJ-mJti')  read  perhaps  Vi^JJli  • 

17-20.  V.  10  was  known  in  our  text  to  the  writer  oi  Jubilees  (xxiii. 
12,  15,  Charles).  It  consists,  however,  of  reminiscences  of  Gen.  xlvii.  9, 
Job  ix.  25  f.,  Isa.  xxxv.  10.  The  first  passage  suggested  the  phrase 
^J''~1')J^  ^12';  'J0>  however,  has  been  extruded  in  MG  by  l^jnjti',  which 
stands  more  correctly  at  the  head  of /.  18.  'y^  ^D^  is  more  fully  repre- 
sented by  j~ini3.13  DJ^"'  (which  Pasek  follows) — an  untranslatable 
phrase  (if  Wcllh.  will  pardon  me).  Dil2  is  not  a  portion  of  DrT^."l  (Du.), 
but  an  editor's  attempt  to  make  sense  of  lin^  miswritten  for  in~l3  (cp. 


PSALMS    XC. 


79 


Job /.c).     DT3*^  and  □^JlDuy  are  both  emendations  of  a  corrupt  form 

of  D''1LyJD  (parallel  to  the  corruption  :nj«^"'»JD  in  Job  vii.  6).     ^'?p— the 

required  parallel  to  in"12— became  effaced.— M  ]1hi1   bl^V   DBrT^T ,  a 

vTT       t"?         t  :    t: 
Stilted  phrase.     Like  DPI^ ,  is  not   D^m  a  corrujjtion  of  in"12  ?     For 

b!2y  read  '^'I'^Pl-— In  7'.  lo/^  n3>'-}T_  VTt   is  plainly  impossible,   nor   is 

GrJitz's  correction  HSID^T  (see  iilGlVJ,  xxvii.  [1878]  130)  satisfactory. 

G  has  oVt  (TTrj\6(v  TTpavrrjs  €(^'  Tifidi,  Kcil  7Tai8€vdr]a6fj.(da,  where   7rpnvTr}s  and 

TTai^evO.    not    improbably  represent  two  variants,  viz.  mjj^  and  n"1D^i- 

TT-:  t:t. 

Of  these  mjj^  is  to  be  preferred  as  a  substitute  for  HS^/J ,  while  li^Tf 

(apparently  neglected  by  G)  may  well  be  a  corruption  of  "TDn.     We  now 

attack  the  improbable  reading  T!l  •     The  root  seems  to  occur  in  Num.  xi. 

31,  but  TJ^T  can  hardly  stand;    it  is  corrupt,  and  possibly   came   from 

TT~ 

ii'lV2,   corrupted   also   into   i'DJ-      Herz's  suggestion    DJ    is    therefore 

T 

plausible  ;  but,  though  a  little  more  remote,  I  prefer  1^^  (T  and  T  con- 
founded).     Thus   /.    20   becomes   m^ri    TDn    Tit3J~^3  ,  which    clearly 

TT-:  -       •:  V  -  T     . 

resembles  the  phraseology  of  xii.  2. 

21  f.  '^r}'^2y^  ^^Pii<y2^  "^3?^  lir  PIV-^^  .  a  strange  question. 
For  who  '  knew  the  power  of  Yahwe's  anger  '  better  than  the  Jews  ?  And 
how  enigmatical  is  the  qualification  *  according  to  thy  fear  '  (Del.,  '  thy 
fearfulness,'  but  nhJI^  in  Ezek.  i.  i8  is  questionable,  see  Cornill)  !  Wellh. 
would  correct  Ti^i«i10T  into  *  *  ^-i>  \'2T,  suspecting  "]il  to  conceal 
some  word  analogous  to  ]']; .  Certainly  he  is  right  in  analyzing  '"lOT 
into  a  verb  and  a  noun.  But  he  overlooks  the  fact  that  a  group  of 
letters  often  does  double  duty  by  representing  two  words  or  a  word  and 
a  part  of  a  word.  Thus  HO  in  '"lOT  represents  (i)  '?0^  (cp.  Joel  ii.  ii), 
and  (2)  n^;)  in  ri~)2J  ■     The   parallelism  is  now  perfect.     Read  b''D'^'\ 

' V  t:  V         -\  : 

23.  M  ^Tin  ]3  ^y!2''  Jl')2'd?,  ?>•  'teach  us  to  ponder  the  short 
duration  of  our  life  (cp.  xxxix.  5  f.)  as  thy  religion  (Hitz.)  or  thy  wrath 
(Driver,  Far.  Fs.,  269)  requires,'  unless  indeed,  with  Ew.,  01.,  Ba.,  Kau., 
we  take  ]3  to  mean  '  such  knowledge.'  Surely  most  unsatisfactory. 
For  p  13^Q^  G  presupposes  TJ\*3''-  This  is  certainly  plausible. 
P  might  be  the  transposed  "JJ  in  7.2%  while  ^2,  if  attached  to  ^mn, 
would  produce  IJ^mil.  '  Make  us  to  know  the  *  *  of  thy  right  hand  ' 
would  be  possible,  if  /.  24,  which  is  certainly  corrupt,  could  be  so  restored 
as  to  give  a  parallel  sense,  e./;.  'the  exploits  of  thine  arm  cause  us  to 
see,'  or  'and  we  will  sing  praise  to  thy  name  for  ever.'  This,  however, 
would  be  hopeless ;  and  since  one  or  two  more  references  to  the 
N.  Arabians,  underlying  the  present  text,  may  well  be  expected,  we 
have  now  to  ask  if  anything  in  our  present  text  is  favourable  to  this 
anticipation.  The  answer  may  be  given  with  some  confidence.  As 
*J^Q^  in  I  S.  ix.  6,  and  elsewhere,  has  arisen  out  of  "•'^h^rwHl^ ,  it  is  even 
more   possible  that   p   IJV.i"'  represents    D'''?i^*3ni^,  since  p  may,  on 


8o 


THE    PSALMS. 


the  ground  ot  many  analogies,  represent  "in,  another  fragment  of 
t'K^niV  (See  also  on  Ix.  7  ;  Ixxx.  18.)  We  have  still,  it  is  true,  to 
emend  711^*37 ,  and  also  to  show  that  /.  24  may  legitimately  be  so 
corrected  as  to  furnish  a  suitable  close  to  a  short  prayer  against  the 
Jerahmeelites.  As  to  mj^? ,  a  perfectly  certain  emendation  is  im- 
possible, because  t2l7  is  obviously  a  fragment  of  '?hi,'2rn\  which  has 
extruded  the  two  opening  letters  of  the    first  word.      Very    probably, 

however,  we  should  read  Dniiij/- 
T        -: 

24-     M  r\r2Dn   22b   ^<:JJ^;    Kr.   ^^aJ^  but  'A  2  E' J  S  presuppose 
t:t-:  .t: 

^?3J^•     T  implies  S^23  ('prophet' !).      G  perhaps  "•jiUJ  (rnvs  neTTaiSev- 

fjifuovs).  So  much  is  clear — that  M's  text  cannot  mean  'that  we  may 
attain  wisdom.'  Yet  if  v.  12a  in  M  is  correct,  the  text  of  7'.  12^ 
ought  to  have  this  sense.  Hence  Wellh.  reads  for  2,2b,  327 ,  and 
renders  'that  we  may  enter  the  gate  of  wisdom.'  Surely  most  im- 
probable. 'Gate  of  wisdom '(We.  compares  mpn  n/lS ,  Hos.  ii.  17) 
is  not  in  the  style  of  a  psalmist,  and  22  is  a  New  Hebrew  word 
(Ar.  l>dfi).  Now  that  we  have  the  key,  however,  the  correction  of 
the  faults  cannot  be  difficult.  Read  probably  nOfl  t'^<;pm^  [^]22\ 
That  7^2  can  represent  '/^}!^^")^  we  have  seen  already  (note  on 
Ixxxvii.  4).  It  is  true,  this  gives  us  a  double  mention  of  the  Jerah- 
meelites. We  might  avoid  this  by  reading  ^33  ;  but  perhaps  '1^  ''22 
was  sufficient  variation  to  satisfy  the  psalmist. 

31.  '^vJ'D ,  all  Vss.  except  Jerome's;  '?j7rD ,  most  MSS.  and 
edd..  and  so  Ginsb.  (note  sing,  verb,  and  analogues  of  other  passages, 
for  which  see  introd.). 

32.  Read,  for  metre's  sake,  Dil'J^  [''J3.]''?>'-  Cp.  ciii.  17. — 
33-  '\2^r\^i^  is  merely  a  variant  to  H^'^'J/.  D^2  (2  koXXos),  which 
cannot  properly  be  applied  to  Yahwe  (see  on  xxvii.  4),  has  possibly 
arisen  out  of  TjnjJ  ;    G  has  XajjLTrpoTrjs,  which  in  Isa.  Ix.  3  represents  njj. 

34.     M    adds    nn23i3    ^Tl"    nm*?21   ^2''bv,   a   dittogram    (T   added 

•• :  "T  ■•  -:  -  ••  T 

at  end). 


PSALM   XCI. 

1  Ri METERS.  The  psalmist,  whose  work  is  fitly  placed  as  a  contrast  to  Ps.  xc, 
describes  the  felicity  of  Israel  in  the  Messianic  age.  This  is  made  to  consist  in  a 
satisfied  sense  of  justice,  Israel  being  rewarded  for  his  perfect  trust  in  Yahwe  by  a 
secure  and  glorious  existence  under  angelic  guardianship  and  of  indefinitely  long 
duration,  while  his  oppressors,  who  are  not  only  described  symbolically  as  serpents, 
adders,  vipers,  and  dragons,  but  realistically  as  Jerahmeelites,  Ishmaelites, 
Arabians,  and  Maacathites,  are  destroyed  by  thousands  and  by  myriads.  The 
psalm  naturally  falls  into  three  parts:  (a)  II.  i-iS,  {h)ll.  19-26,  {c)  II.  27-34. 
Each  of  these  begins  with  a  reference  to  Israel's  trust  in  Vahwe,  and  closes  with  a 


PSALM     XCI.  bl 

reference  U)  his  deliverance  from  his  enemies  ;  tlie  close  of  the  tliird  part.  Iiowcver, 
is  expressed  with  more  reserve  than  that  of  the  two  preceding  parts,  so  as  to  avoid 
leaving  an  unjileasing  impression.  The  ordinary  view  (that  the  psalm  is  a  general 
expres>5ion  of  faith  in  a  righteous  and  faiihful  God,  cp.  Job  v.  17  ff.)  must  there- 
fore be  abandoned.  The  psalm,  like  so  many  others,  was  originally  full  of  point. 
For  Israel  to  enjoy  his  future  h.n]ipiness  without  the  assurance  that  this  would  not 
be  rudely  disturbed  by  his  restle,->s  and  malicious  foes,  would  l)e  impossible.  For 
devotional  use  we  cannot  but  estimate  the  work  of  the  later  editor  highly  ;  it  has  a 
value  of  its  own,  and  the  best  right  of  existence  in  the  Church's  hymnal.  On  the 
reference  of  tlie  psalm,  cp.  Coblenz,  pp.  189  f.  It  is  only  the  psalm  as  modified 
by  an  editor  which  permits  a  doubt  as  to  whether  the  pious  community  or  the 
individual  Israelite  (so  Duhm)  maybe  supposed  to  be  addressed.  But  cp.  Smend, 
ZATIV,  iSSS,  p.  S7. 

I  Happy  is  the  servant  of  the  Most  High  !  I 

In  the  Rock  of  Israel  dotli  he  abide. 

I  say  of  Yahwe,  +'  He  is+  my  refuge,  2 

My  fortress  ^  in  which  I  trust. 

'  For  he  will  rescue  thee  from  the  sword,  3 

He  will  deliver  thee  from  the  insults  of  the  Arabian  ; 
With  his  pinions  will  he  shelter  thee,  4 

And  under  his  wings  wilt  thou  find  refuge  ; 
[For  with]  his  favour  will  he  encompass  thee, 
10         [And  with]  his  faithfulness  [will  he  crown  thee]. 

'  Thou  wilt  not  fear  the  sword  of  Jerahmeel,  5 

Nor  dread  the  arrow  of  the  Ishmaelites, 
The  Arabian  who  roves  in  the  darkness,  6 

The  Maacathite  who  ravages  at  noonday : 

'  Thousands  will  fall  among  thine  adversaries,  7 

Myriads  among  thy  haters  ; 

Thine  eye  will  gaze  at  Jerahmeel  ;  8 

It  will  behold  the  recompense  of  the  Asshurites.. 

'  For  thou  hast  made  Yahwe  thy  refuge,  9 

20         Thou  hast  taken  the  Most  High  for  thy  stronghold  ; 

No  misfortune  will  befall  thee,  10 

No  calamity  will  come  nigh  thy  tent. 

'  For  he  charges  his  angels  concerning  thee  1 1 

To  guard  thee  in  all  thy  ways. 

On  their  hands  will  they  bear  thee,  12 

Lest  thy  foot  strike  against  a  stone. 

On  serpents  and  vipers  wilt  thou  tread,  13 

On  vipers  and  dragons  wilt  thou  trample.' 


My  God. 


II. 


82  THE    PSALMS. 

'  Because  in  me  he  takes  refuge,  I  will  free  him,  14 

I  will  make  him  secure  because  he  knows  my  name  : 
When  he  calls  upon  me  I  will  answer  him,  15 

30         Tn  trouble  I  myself  am  at  his  side. 

1  will  rescue  him  and  bring  him  to  honour, 

***** 

With  prolonged  days  will  I  satisfy  him,  16 

And  grant  him  to  enjoy  my  succour.' 

I.       The     servant  .  .  .    TMVD  Jer.   xlix.    35    (dl'V  from  '^NDm^), 

indicates     the     priestly    office    of    the  -ffos.  11.  20. 

person    referred    to.     That    person    is  20.     Thy    stronghold.     Cp.  xc. 

pious  Israel  (cp.  Isa.  Ixi.  6,  Ex.  xix.  6).  i.— 23. — //is  atigels.  '  Vahwe's  mighty 

ones   {gililwri/ii,  ciii.  20,  Joel  iv.    11). 

4ff.    My    fortress.    See  xviii.  2.  ^o  trace  here  of  the  belief  in  z.  single 

From  the  sword,  viz.  of  Jerahmeel  (/.  angelic  guardian  of  a  nation  (Dan.  x. 

11).  — From    the   insidts  .  .  .     Such  j^,    20).      Duhm,    who    explains    the 

insults  as 'Where  is  thy  God?'  (xhi.  3,  psalm   as   belonging  to   the   pious   Is- 

10,  Ixxix.  10,  cxv.  2).  raelite,  illustrates  the  passage  by  Tobit 

7.      With    his    pinions.      Per-  f^"^  ^^"-  >''•  J^ere,  however,  a  single 

haps  a  reminiscence  of  Dt.  xxxii.   11.  l^eavenly  guardian  is  referred  to.  ^ 

But  cp.  Ixi.  5.  25.     Symbols  of  deadly  malignity. 

Cp.  Iviii.  5,  cxl.  4,  Dt.  xxxii.  33.     The 

9  f.     See  V.  13.— 1 1.    The  szoord  of  .  ]Jq,^  ^^^d  adder '  of  M  T  are,  as  Duhm 

Jerahmeel .  .  .      For  the  fear  inspired  lemarks,    'a  singular  pair.'     The  lion 

by  the  Jerahmeelites  cp.  cxxi.  6,  Cant.  ^^^^j  ^i^g  dragon,  however,  are  combined 

111.  8  (see  Crtt.  Btb.).     The  ;  sword  of  ;„  gi^^^,)^  j,^,.,  ,6_     g^g  ^^-^^^  ^^^^^ 
Jerahmeel,    or  of  'the    Arabian,     was 

proverbial  (see  Ixiv.  2l>,  Ixxvi.  4,  and  27.     A  sudden  and  effective  transi- 

Cril.  Bib.  on  Jer.  vi.  25^,  Hos.  ii.  20).  tion,  as  in  xlvi.  11 ;  cp.  xii.  6. — 29-34. 

— 12.    7'he  arroWy  &c.     Cp.  Ixxvi.  4,  Cp.  1.  15,  23. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  M  p^by  "^KP^  ^^"^ '  ^^^^  subject  to  ]:)i':'jn\ 
making  this  warm,  devotional  lyric  begin  with  a  tautological  maxim. 
Grimme  proposes  to  read  2^%  and  in  v.  2a  to  point  "I^^N,  thus  provid- 
ing a  subject  for  the  two  verbs  3t^^  and  '^Jl^ .  2i^^  had  already  been 
suggested  by  Krochmal,  who  attached  v.  i  to  the  heading  of  Ps.  xc,  as  a 
pious  ejaculation  in  honour  of  Moses.  This,  however,  is  without  a 
parallel  in  Jewish  poetry.  A  step  in  the  right  direction  was  taken  by 
Kennicott,  who  proposed  to  prefix  n^J>{  (so  after  him  Ol.,  Hu.,  Reuss, 
Dy.,  Gr.,  Bi.,  Che.'i',  Kau.  ;  Hal.  '^"'il^'N}),  but  this  produces  a  tetra- 
meter. A  little  more  experience  of  the  errors  of  the  scribes  would  have 
shown  that  '^'W'tK  may  underlie  "y^"^ ;  and  if  this  is  possible,  we  have  no 
alternative  but  to  adopt  the  view,  for  no  other  introduction  is  well  con- 
ceivable (cp.  xli.  2,  cxii.  I,  cxxviii.  i).  It  follows  from  this  that  "l/ID^  is 
wrong,  in  spite  of  the  parallelism  with  7^^-  No  result  of  experience 
is  more  sure  than  this — that  the  words  which  look  the  most  certain  are 
often  the  most  cjuestionable.  On  the  analogy  of  the  parallel  passages, 
the  clause  with  ^Ii/^<  ought  to  describe  the  class  to  which  the  'happy 


PSALM    XCI.  83 

person  belongs,  and  the  clause  with  ''^Jl^  the  nature  of  the  happiness 
which  he  enjoys.  Either  "1J1D2  or  (if  2  is  to  be  prefixed  to  ]vbv)  "IJID 
ought,  therefore,  to  represent  a  participle.  By  no  possibility  can  "IJ^D 
have  arisen  out  of  ntOll ;  it  would  seem  then  that  the  initial  2.  must  have 
come  out  of  the  preformative  of  the  Piel    pafticiple.     Read,  therefore, 

"T  : 

2.  M  ^^i^  7^;i .  The  only  strongly  suspicious  feature  of  this  is  Hii^  (see 
Enc.  Bib.,  '  Shaddai ').  Remember  (i)  that  this  rare  divine  name  only 
occurs  once  again  in  M  of  the  Psalter  (Ixviii.  15),  and  that  there  it  is 
corrupt.  Notice  also  (2)  that  v.  2  presents  points  of  contact  with  xviii.  3  ; 
we  do  not  expect  a  reference  in  v.  i  to  the  shadow  of  Yahwe's  wings  (cp. 
xxxvi.  8,  &c.)  here,  whereas  in  t'.  4  a  reference  to  these  wings  is  quite 
natural.     Read  7^<"1ii'"'  T13.  (Isa.  xxx.  29,  2  S.  xxiii.  3). 

3.  M  "i;2N  ;  this  seems  to  be  right.  G  ep^' =  ">Q^^  ?— so  Hu.,  Dy., 
Gr.,  &c.  But  this  is  consequent  upon  the  corruptions  in  //.  i,  2.  Bar- 
hebrc-eus  (Bii.),  Hi.,  We.,  ~)bi^  • 

4.  Either  ''nTlJi,';3T  or  ^nt'hi  is  an  insertion  ;  probably  the  latter. 
Thus  we  get  a  better  parallelism.     The  writer  thinks  of  xviii.  2  ;  cp.  v.  9. 

5  f .  Verse  yi  is  too  long  and  v.  ^b  too  short  for  a  tetrameter.  We  have 
also  to  ask  whether  '  the  fowler's  snare  '  and  '  the  destructive  pestilence  ' 
are  likely  terms  for  the  great  national  trouble.  And  altogether  one  may 
have  considerable  doubt  whether  the  large  amount  of  space  given  in  this 
psalm  (according  to  M  G)  to  danger  from  pestilence  is  in  the  least 
probable.  In  v.  5a  we  find  TOw  inDi^  ,  where  nT*?  (which  again  and 
again  in  Pss.  has  grown  out  of  another  word  ;  cp.  on  xvi.  7,  xlii.  9, 
Ixxvii.  3)  is  certainly  a  corruption  of  t'SI^^ni'' ,  and  in  v.  6a  "I^TQ  for 
"•^"^VD  •  It  is  surely  plain  that  PISD  has  come  from  "THSQ,  and  natural 
to  correct  this  word  both  here  and  in  v.  5a  into  QIHi'D  •  And  what  of 
^1p^  ?  Parallelism  suggests  the  correction  T|^''iy^ ,  which  corresponds  in 
sense  and  in  position  to  "jT-U^ .  JlilH  "IQirj  should  probably  be 
'^H'^V  D^Bim^  •  niin  is  a  priori  likely  to  be  corrupt  (cp.  on  Ivii.  2). 
G  S  2  suggest  I^ID  (cp.  xxxviii.  13)  ;  so  Kenn.,  Gr.,  Ba.,  Grimme. 
Inadequate. 

9  f.  M  iriuJ^i  rnnbT  n-3'i.  So  'a  T  J  and  perhaps  2  ;  T  has 
^<b"':lJ;'l  i^DnJl'  (cp.  f,  x'xxv.  2).  But  ninD ,  '  buckler,'  is  hard  to 
defend,  and  corruption  from  HD'*!/!  (cp.  Tharsi,  the  surname  of  .Simon 
the  Maccabee  [S,  i  Mace.  ii.  3J )  is  improbable.  G  presupposes  ^D^b** 
(cp.  Dt.  xxxii.  10).  So  Whitehouse;  Kenn.  badly  ■J"inD^-  This,  how- 
ever, is  not  enough.  Dt.  xxxii.  10  suggests  that,  not  Yahwe's  truth,  but 
Yahwe  himself  is  the  subject  of  the  verb.  Note  also  (i)  the  omission 
of  3  before  HJi,  (2)  that  we  do  not  expect  a  triplet,  and  (3)  that  we  have 


84  THE    PSALMS. 

already  had  cause  to  suspect  H^ji  in  v.  13  (see  note).     Taking  a  sugges- 
tion from  that  passage  and  from  xxxii.  10,  let  us  read — 

T   V  :  - :  •  -:  - 

II.  M  r\>b  in3*.2-  Read  t^N^jn"]^  ^ID'^  (s^^  °^  ^-  S)-  I"'or 
a  nearly  exact  parallel,  see  Cant.  iii.  8  (armed  warriors,  'for  fear  of 
Jerahmeel,'  read  t'h^DrT'T'  for  n'?"'?).  1115)2  in  Ps.  is  really  a  confusion 
between  liini^  (3  became  3)  and  "inSjl .  Line  12  should  begin 
irrDn  iih  (Wi^l^H  Nb;  cp.  xxvii.  i);  the  Hib  fell  out  owing  to  the 
preceding  n'7^/-  UDV  ^iy^  needs  correction  ;  DQV  is  hardly  less 
suspicious  than  H'?^'?-  The  words  evidently  represent  some  ethnic, 
surely  D^T'KritSTi^^  (two  corrupt  fragments). 

i3f.  M  "131'^.  Read  '•^iPp.  The  corruption  is  paralleled  else- 
where.—IM  "^bryj  Read  Tj'jJn"'  (Prov.  vi.  11).— M  2t3pr2  ;  cp.  Dt.  xxxii.  24. 
Read  TiD^Br^'-  The  final  i  in  2lDpu)  comes  from  'r2  ;  t3  from  D  ;  p 
from  3.  Cp.  jEfic.  7?zA,  '  Maacah,'  place-name,  end. — M  nti'V  Read 
I't''  (Ba.). 

T 

15.  IM  ^1^*3,  followed  by  Pasek.  Vague:  also,  if  the  speaker  is 
Israel,  unsuitable.     Read   l^l^r.3. 

16.  M  lj>;2^3.  Read  TT^hiiti'QO.  Omit  tT  iib  l''?^^,  which 
implies  the  wrong  reading  mi  in  v.  6.  It  seems  to  be  due  to  liie 
editor,  who  gently  manipulated  the  relics  of  two  marginal  corrections, 
viz.  ':5XanT,  represented  by  s"?  ybi^,  and  Unw:i  (  =  D'')Wii  or 
D''n^l:'^i),  represented  by  t:>:i>.     See  on  /.  18. 

17.  M  CSri  ^"•J'i^Il  pi.  A  poor  parallel  to  /.  18.  pi  too  is  very 
odd,  and  *]''J^p3  very  weak.  The  two  first  words  are  clearly  an 
attenuated  form  of  7i<r.3ni''2  '^T^''-  ■^°^  ^"  early  (partial)  correction 
see  preceding  note. 

18.  M  D''3/ii^l-  This  might  be  an  epithet  of  the  Jerahmeelites  (/.  17). 
But  bearing  in  mind  xcii.  12  (corr.  text),  and  considering  that  we  have  to 
account  for  ^)1>  in  v.  ']b,  we  cannot  help  restoring  D^ll^'S. 

19  f.  ^Jl^^  is  plainly  wrong.  We  might  read  '>'7  ^TJllD^^"''D 
(similarly  Grimme)  ;  see  /.  3.  To  insert  /^l,2^<,  with  01.,  Hu.,  Gr., 
Kau.  &c.,  before  or  after  iljlN,  would  make  a  tetrameter.  Merrick, 
Lowth,  Wellh.,  propose  "jDnrj,  i-c.  'as  for  thee,  Yahwe  is  thy  refuge'; 
but  comparing  Ixxiii.  28,  why  not  read  ■^Dli'S  '^  rTjl;i^"^3  .''  So  Pedes, 
Anal.,  86.— M  ^_^ipQ.  Read  Tj.n;\2  (01.,' Gr.,  Che."",  Kau.).  Cp.  on 
Ixxi.  3,  xc.  I. 


PSALM    XCII.  85 

27.  The  combinations  '  lion  and  adder,'  '  young  lion  and  dragon  '  are 
improbable.  For  bn^I)  G  {en  danlda)  presupposes  ^tl\.  This  should 
be  restored,  and  for  1^33  we  should  probably  read  ^~\3  or  the  like, 
agreeably  to  G's  rendering  of  DH^DD  ''^iD  in  Job  iv.  10  {yavpiaiia 
8paKovTU)v),  which  Beer  explains  by  a  reference  to  Ass.  kurfa,  '  asp,  viper.' 

29.     AI  r)tr\  ■'2.     Incredible.     Read  HOn  ^1  (cp.  //.  3,  21),  with  G, 

'      -  T  .  T  T  . 

Kennicott. 


PSALM    XCII. 

1  RIMETERS.  A  hymn  to  the  faithful  God  who  has  so  wondrously  interposed 
for  his  righteous  people.  So  at  least  it  appears  at  first  sight.  But  the  point  of 
view  is  only  imaginative  ;  '  we  see  not  yet  all  things  put  under  him '  (Heb.  ii.  8). 
As  in  the  case  of  other  psalms  (especially  xlvi.-xlviii.),  the  descriptions  of 
triumph  over  Israel's  foes  are  anticipative.  Whether  any  minor  political  event, 
fortunate  for  Israel  but  disastrous  for  Edomites,  supplied  fuel  to  the  flame  of  faith, 
we  know  not,  nor  is  the  supposition  at  all  necessary.  Yox  Israel  had  learned  the 
lesson  of  patience;  God's  mill  grinds  slowly,  and  die  'end  '  will  come  suddenly. 
True  wisdom  consisted,  for  the  pious,  in  ability  to  realize  that  Yahwe  permits  his 
opponents  to  proceed  to  an  extreme  of  arrogance  in  order  to  make  his  vengeance 
the  more  strikingly  complete  (cp.  Isa.  x.  32-34),  immediately  after  which  Israel 
will  receive  the  righteous  reward  of  his  piety.  We  may,  with  Gratz,  compare 
Ps.  Ixxiii.  (cp.  vv.  6  f.  with  Ixxiii.  22),  except  that  the  writer  of  our  psalm  yives 
no  hint  of  the  mental  agony  which  many  believers  underwent  in  endeavouring  to 
reach  or  to  keep  this  wisdom.  See  also  xciv.  8-10,  and  cp.  the  neighbouring 
psalms  in  general.  In  all  these  psalms  there  has  been  great  editorial  activity  in 
the  correction  and  adaptation  of  the  text,  and  if  there  is  really  an  allusion  in 
I  Mace.  ix.  23  to  the  tradidonal  text  of  v.  8,  it  is  clear  that  the  text  must  have 
been  transformed  not  later  than  the  Maccabrean  period.  The  corruption  of  the 
original  title  (see  on  &.  i)  led  to  the  appropriation  of  this  psalm  to  the  sabbath, 
and  consequently  to  that  of  Ps.  xciv.  to  the  fourth,  and  of  Ps.  xciii.  to  the  fifth 
day  of  the  week.  This  liturgical  arrangement  involved  some  raUier  artificial 
applications  of  the  text.  Thus  the  Targ.  gives  this  title  to  Ps.  xcii.,  '  Praise  and 
song  which  Adam  the  first  man  said  upon  the  sabbath-day,'  and  even  Delitzsch  is 
so  far  influenced  as  to  interpret  '  thy  works '  (xcii.  6)  of  the  works  of  creation. 

Marked.     Of  tlie  Ishinaeliks.  i 

I         Good  is  it  to  give  thatiks  to  Yahwe,  2 

To  chant  praise  to  the  name  of  the  Most  Higli, 
To  declare  his  lovingkindness  in  the  sanctuary,  3 

His  faithfulness  in  the  house  of  our  God, 
To  the  sound  of  the  horn  and  the  lute,  4 

To  the  sweetly-sounding  notes  of  the  lyre. 

For  thou  hast  gladdened  me,  O  Yahwe  !  by  thy  doing,        5 
At  the  works  of  thy  hands  I  shout  for  joy. 
How  great  are  thy  works,  O  Yahwe  !  o 

10       Exceeding  deep  are  thy  designs. 

A  dullard  cannot  discern  this,  7 

A  fool  cannot  understand  it. 


86 


THE    PSALMS. 


For  those  of  Ashliur  and  Alaacath  were  in  league,  8a 

And  all  the  clans  of  On  stood  in  array. 
The  hosts  of  the  Ishmaelites  perished,  8^,  9 

All  the  clans  of  On  were  scattered  abroad  ;' 

And  the  castles  of  Jerahmeel  were  consumed,  11 

And  the  palaces  of  Ishmael  were  broken  in  pieces  ; 
Mine  eye  beheld  the  fate  of  Ishmael,  12 

20       It  had  pleasure  in  the  fate  of  the  clans  of  On. 

The  righteous  springs  up  like  a  palm-tree,  13 

Waxes  tall  as  a  cedar  in  Lebanon  ; 

By  the  goodness  of  Yah  we  they  are  safe  and  sound,  14 

By  the  lovingkindness  of  our  God  they  are  healed. 


They  are  still  vigorous  in  old  age. 

They  are  full  of  sap  and  luxuriant  ; 

To  make  known  that  Yahwe  is  just. 

That  in  m}'  Rock  there  is  no  unrighteousness. 


15 
16 


I  f.,  5  f.  Cp.  xxxiii.  I  f.— 7  f.    Thou 
hasV  gladdened  me,    as    if   in   answer 

to  the  prayer  in  xc.  15.  7^3,  of 
Yahvve's  great  deeds  for  his  people,  as 
in  xc.  16  (see  introd.  to  Ps.  xc,  end). 
—  The  works  of  thy  hands,  synon.  with 
'thy  doing';  cp.  cxliii.  5.  Del.  ex- 
plains of  the  works  of  creation,  but  the 
reference  to  national  foes  is  too  marked 
to  allow  this. 

10  f.  Thy  desigjis,  i.e.  thy  plans 
for  training  and  establishing  thy  people 
(cp.  xl.  6,   Isa.  Iv.  8  f.). — A  dicllard, 

ni^3 ,    as    xlix.     II,    Ixxiii. 
8. 


UV2.  Dnr3,xciv 

T  T  .-: 


22  ;     cp. 
See  introd. 


13  ff.  The  difficulties  of  the  text  are 
really  insuperable.  Nevertheless,  the 
editor  deserves  credit  for  suggesting  a 
meaning  which  must  have  commended 
itself  to  many  readers.  The  old  re- 
tribution doctrine  has  been  modified. 
Tlie  righteous,  as  experience  shows,  do 
not  always  llourish.  ]5ut  when  the 
wicked  seem  to  be  at  the  height  of  their 
glory  we  may  be  sure  that  a  sudden 


catastrophe  is  at  hand  (cp.  xciv.  13). 
The  original  text,  however,  referred  to 
the  anticipated  confederation  of  N. 
Arabian  peoples  (under  archaic  de- 
signations) against  Israel.  See  crit. 
note.  Cp.  on  Ixxxiii.  6-9,  xciv.  II.  13  f. 
—For  Oil,  see  on  xiv.,  /.  7.  —  The 
castles  of  Jerahmeel.  See  on  ix.  7,  and 
cp.  on  xlix.  12,  Ixix.  26,  Am.  i.  12, 
Isa.  XXV.  2. 


21.    p^^ii. 


the     '  righteous 


nation '  (Isa.  xxvi.  2)  personified.  So 
Isa.  xxiv.  16,  Hab.  i.  4,  13,  ii.  4. 
Naturally  enough,  the  plural  soon  steps 
in  (//.  23  f.). — Like  a  pabn-lree.  Trees 
are  symbols  both  of  the  long  life  (Isa. 
Ixv.  22,  cp.  Ps.  xci.  16)  and  the  pros- 
perous activity  (i.  3)  of  Vahwe's 
lieople.  The  ^\rabian  poet  Labid  has 
a  similar  comparison  of  God's  blessed 
ones  to  fruit-laden  palm-trees.  Cp. 
also  Crit.  Bib.,  on  Num.  xxiv.  6. 

24.  Healed,  i.e.  brought  into  a 
condition  of  soundness  (/.  23).  Cp. 
Kx.  XV.  26,  '  I  am  \'ahwe  thy  healer '  ; 
Ps.  ciii.  3,  cvii.  20. 


'  The  hosts  of  the  Arabians  perish,  |  all  those  of  Jerahmeel   are   scattered 
abroad  {v.  10). 


PSALM    XCII.  87 

Critical  Notes.  Title.  JlZlli^'f  QV*?  (so  too  G)  may  have  come  from 
Pi'T'iy^TVbV-,  which  represents  C^Sl'^i:/"''?.  See  on  title  of  Ps.  xxxviii., 
and  cp.  the  psalm-heading,  '  of  Salmah.'     See  General  Introd. 

2  f.    M  ^rjii',  -^TDn    ^n^voj^.    Read  X2t,  norr,  ^J^3^:J^i, 

'  :••  '  v:  -  '  :  T   .•  v:  :  :   -  t       v: 

because  of  mn^'?  (see  on  /.  3)  •lJ\~t7J>{.     1  and  "^  are  easily  confounded. 

3.  M  npiH,  nh'hii.  n'l7v  occurs  again  in  xvi.  7,  cxxxiv.  i  ;  in 
each  case  it  is,  for  a  special  reason,  suspicious.  Here  too  it  surprises  us, 
(i)  because  it  forms  a  poor  parallel  to  "1p3j  and  (2)  because  the  line 
produced  by  it  is  metrically  incomplete.  Cp.  cxxxiv.  i  f.  (corn  text),  and 
read  ^'il^'l  and  ^yTp)>i.  n^2- 

5.  Read  'pn^l  'y^'W  '7p2  (see  on  xxxiii.  2). 

V  T :       T  '    : 

6.  M  "li2D:il  "IVan  "h^^.  'jn  is  thought  to  mean  '  loud  music  '  ;  but 
see  note  on  ix.  17,  the  only  other  supposed  authority  for  this  sense 
Read  -)i33  JltJ^i?;  t'ip3 .     See  on  cl.  \b. 

13-16.  There  is  considerable  difficulty  here,  though  not  of  the  kind 
which  strikes  the  superficial  reader.  The  figurative  description  of  the 
wicked  as  '  springing  up  '  (HIB)  and  '  blossoming  '  (y^^)  is  not  what  we 
expect ;  the  wickedness,  as  Ps.  xciv.  shows,  was  very  concrete. 
ip""'"!^  DII^li'riT  also  stands  in  strange  isolation  ;  we  should  at  the 
very  least  have  to  prefix  7|J<.  Then,  how  improbable  is  Qliro  nJlN  • 
And  apart  from  the  repetition  (not  found  in  G^),  how  impossible  is  the 
vagueness  of  v.  9  !  Surely  the  mystery  spoken  of  in  v.  7  has  a  definite 
historical  reference.  A  probable  solution  of  the  problem  can  be  offered. 
Read— 

T-;-  .        -  :   T         . 

'  •• :   -       T  :  -  :  •- 

T  T  •      ••    :  :  •        ..-:  - 

••:    -       T  :  T  :  .- 

This  result  is  reached  by  considering  vv.  S,  9,  10  together.  Verse  8c?  gives 
us  a  complete  distich,  but  the  text  needs  correction.  Q""_P!in  probably 
comes  from  lltt^hi  '  Asshur'=Ashhur  or  Geshur  (see  on  Ixxxiii.  9).  VJD 
is  a  fragment  of  riDi^DT-  I'^V  ^"d  1iJ"'Ji"'T  are  both  corruptions  of 
inU''JT'V  PJ*  '•'^^^S  is,  not  certainly,  but  very  possibly  lihi  '^^'^  (see 
on  xiv.  4).  Next,  as  to  vv.  8<5,  9  ;  these  represent  another  but  not  a 
complete  distich.  The  material  provided  is—  T^TSt^'S  IJ-^'ni^  ZSTWTt) 
mn^  'dl'yh  DTID  ;  most  unnatural.  Here  v.  10  gives  invaluable  help. 
Omitting  a  dittogram,  together  with  the  inserted  mn\  and  correcting 
njil  ""D  into  ^jnO,  and  IIJ^  'h')!'^~^l^  as  proposed,  we  have— 


88  THE    PSALMS. 

We  now  see  what  Wl'D'VTT?  and  "]]}  ^l^;  must  have  come  from,  viz. 
D^'rj^^^DIi^''  and  n2hi-  To  the  former  word  D'^IV  's  a  variant.  ■':3np 
has  fallen  out  before  ':2W^-  With  regard  to  Dlirj  HnNT  and  d?])^ 
mn\  the  former  appears  to  represent  1113/1^1,  the  latter  □"•'^'Si^nT 
(the  two  halves  of  the  word  transposed).  'n"l^  is  a  variant  to  pj^  ''Bt'i^- 
For  M2ii  we  might  read  "ll^l,  'shuddered.' 

17-  M  >J"lp  D•'^^■^3  D'^m  ;  G  J,  however,  presuppose  Dlj^l  (so  too 
Hi.).  D"'^i'^  is  usually  taken  to  be  inaccurately  written  for  DhiT;  cp. 
D^"1,  Job  xxxix.  9  f.  But  both  /.  17  and  /.  18  are  suspicious,  and  the  "•  in 
0^^}"^^  is  rather  to  be  viewed  as  an  indication  of  corruption.  Assuming 
that  the  destruction  of  the  enemies  is  still  referred  to,  it  is  not  only 
possible  but  probable  that  we  should  read  'pXQm"'  nijr.2~l}>i  ^Dj^'^T  (cp. 
ix.  7,  corn  text).  That  3  and  2,  "1  and  T  may  be  confounded,  is  well 
known.  The  final  J")  in  ")i^  was  probably  once  marked  by  a  sign  of 
abbreviation.  ""Jlp  comes  probably  from  Qp")  {"^2  =  ^),  one  of  the 
current  mutilations  of  'pj^,"Dn~l''  (cp.  E.  Bib.,  '  Rekem ').— M  *pii^3  ''fbl 
\1V^-  The  usage  of '^7^  in  Leviticus  does  not  favour  the  reading  of  M  ; 
besides  the  word  is  elsewhere  transitive  (hence  01.,  Du.  "•Jji^H).  And 
if  Py~)  were  right,  should  we  not  recjuire  ^1133,  or  the  like  ?  G  2  J 
presuppose  ""ji^Jl  'my  waxing  old'  (?  Gen.  xviii.  12),  which  is  adopted 
by  Hu.,  Bi.,  Bii.  It  should  be  added  that  2  also  presupposes  ^JtiO,  for 
he  renders  ij  TraXaLcaa-Ls  fxov  w?  eXala  evdaXrjs.  Plainly,  however,  '^'ijj  cannot 
be  equivalent  to  ^roii^"]!!  (Isa.  v.  i,  2  eXaia).     Sense  can  only  be  restored 

by  reading  ^);i22  bii};:2V''  ''''^^'^]  (]^'^  ^'^^  ''-2^%  as  Isa.  v.  i,  x.  27,  and 

elsewhere). 

19  f.     M  ''"Tllir^l-     The  vss.  presuppose  ''")"li^3 ,  which  Gr.,  Hal.,  Ba., 

We.,  Du.,  Buhl  adopt.     But  this  is  a  very  doubtful  form  (see  on  v.  9),  and 

we  require  here  an  ethnic.     Read  "[JSyD^^Il  •— M  DT^^  '^'^V  D'DD^, 

..  T  :  ■  :  •   ••  :      -  t  .  't- 

which  Hitzig  attempts  to  account  for  by  comparmg  i  Chr.  .xxvii.  5,  i  S. 

xxxi.   3.     Other    critics  (Ley,  Ba.,   We.   and    01.  ?)    arbitrarily  expunge 

D'^yiitD  as  a  gloss  on  "^^^^  DV::p2,  while  Duhm  deletes  >bv  D^!2p2,  and 

Gratz  is  content  to  read  Dlp.'^.     But  there  is  surely  a  better  remedy. 

D'^DpH  and  D''i^"ir:i  "^b^  (cp.  on  xcii.  12)  both  represent  D'^t'X^nT' :  no 

correction  could  be  more  abundantly  justified  by  parallels. — .M  njyiDIi^j"! 

^JT^?>  an  unexampled  phrase.     Read  certainly  nyTVl'I^'^D  (cxix.  16,  47, 
t:  T  T  :  -:  -  :    • 

and  corr.  text  of  147). 

23.     M  D  v^/TX^-     But  were  any  trees  planted  in  the  temple  courts  ? 

See  on  lii.  10.     Besides  we  require  an   independent  clause,  parallel  to 

/.   24,  not  a  mere  subject  to  in^"13^  in  that   line.     The  text   must   be 

incorrect.     Read  probably  ID'^uL'^  ;  cp.  on  n'!'ir)t£'',  Hos.  ix.  13.     Continue 

mn^  nvton  (cp.  lii.  lo). 

24  f.     For  7li-i:^*n3  read  10113  and  for  innS^  read  1N31V     So  a 
natural  sense  is  recovered. — For  'jlin^^  read  IIB^^  (Gr.)  :  cp.  on  Ixii.  ir. 


PSALM  XCIII.  89 

PSALM  XCIII. 

1  RIMETERS.  This  is  Usually  regarded  as  one  of  the  'accession-psalms,'  and 
classed  with  Pss.  xlvii.  and  xcv.-c,  most  of  which,  according  to  Prof.  Priggs,  were 
originally  parts  of  one  great  hymn  on  the  theme  '  Vahwe  doth  reign'  {Messianic 
Prophecy,  ^/i,()  f.;  similarly  Griitz).  It  is,  however,  strange  that  Ps.  xciii.  should  be 
separated  from  Ps.  xcv.,  and  the  difficulties  of  the  little  poem  are  so  great  that  one 
is  obliged  to  test  the  traditional  text  very  strictly,  in  case  it  should  have  arisen  by 
editorial  recasting  of  an  older  text.  The  result  at  which  we  arrive  is  certainly 
disappointing.  We  should  have  been  glad  of  a  psalm  on  a  perfectly  new  theme, 
and  if,  as  Hommel  {Exp.  T.  x.  48.  [1898])  suggested,  it  was  derived  from  a 
primitive  Babylonian  hymn  to  the  god  Ea,  only  those  who  think  it  essential  to 
religion  to  isolate  Israelite  literature  from  external  influences  would  take  offence. 
The  conjecture,  however,  is  a  gratuitous  one.  Nor  can  we  even  hold  with  Duhm 
that  the  original  theme  (cp.  the  title  of  Ps.  xciii.  in  G)  was  the  victory  of  Yahwe, 
at  creation,  over  the  primitive  sea  of  chaos  (a  weakened  form  of  the  dragon-myth). 
Nor  can  the  psalm  be  said  to  commemorate  the  restoration  of  Israel  and  the 
rebuilding  of  the  temple  regarded  as  a  manifestation  of  Yahwe's  royalty.  It  is,  in 
its  true  form,  a  song  of  praise  for  the  humiliation  of  Jerahmeel,  which  is  the  first 
act  in  the  great  drama  of  the  final  judgment.  It  is  eschatological,  and,  copying 
Isa.  xxvi.  I,  we  might  well  prefix  to  it  the  formula,  '  In  that  day  shall  this  song 
be  sung  in  the  land  of  Judah.'  That  the  editor  should  liave  at  all  succeeded 
in  recasting  the  psalm  deserves  high  recognition.  The  vagueness  and  obscurity 
which  envelop  the  psalm  as  it  now  stands  is  not  without  effectiveness.  Some 
one  has  called  it '  an  echo  of  Niagara.'  A  similar  echo  can  be  heard  in  xlii.  8,  a 
recast  passage.  The  first  part  of  the  title  in  G  (B^),  referring  to  the  peopling 
of  the  earth,  is  in  accordance  with  Jewish  tradition  {Kosh  ha-shana,  1\a).  Cp. 
on  Ps.  xxiv. 

I  Yahwe  [has  laid  low]  Jerahmeel,  i 

[By  his]  chiding  he  has  extinguished  Ishmael, 
Yahwe  has  destroyed  Asshur. 

He  has  also  laid  low  Tubal  and  Maacath. 

Cush  and  Edom  are  abolished,  2 

The  Jerahmeelites  thou  hast  made  to  vanish. 

The  Jerahmeelites  are  desolated,  3 

Consumed  are  the  Arabians  and  the  Ishmaelites,  4 

Yahwe  has  shown  his  glory  on  Jerahmeel. 

10         Th}'  purposes  are  abundantly  fulfilled,  5 

The  courts  of  thy  house  we  shall  enter, 
O  Yahwe  !  for  endless  days. 

1-9.     The  description   is  anticipa-  10.       Parallel:    Isa.    xxv.   i. —  II. 

live.     Cp.  ix.  5  f.,  and  xcii.  //.  13-20.        Cp.  xcv.  6,  xcvi.  8,  c.  2,  4. 

Critical  Notes.  The  difficulty  of  the  metrical  arrangement  oivv.  i,  2, 
as  the  text  stands,  is  obvious.  The  double  ti^^7  in  v.  i  is  also  suspicious. 
The  difficulties  are  largely  caused  by  corruptions  of  ethnic  names — 
corruptions  which  are  common  enough  elsewhere.  The  following  may 
approximate  to  the  true  text,— 


go  THE    PSALMS. 

bi^DHT   [inn]  mn^' 

••  T  :  •         -  .  T-;-  • 

T      T        '        ••  :  -: 

•  T       '  V     : 

In  V.  1  the  second  \^^b ,  according  to  rule,  should  be  bii}?l2W^-  b2 
is  evidently  dittographic.  fl/l  being  of  course ':'3jn,  lDIDD  should  be 
D^V^  (xcvi.  10).  The  other  alterations  are,  in  this  context,  very 
probable.  "jIDj")  (but  G  &c.  ]3r])  is  a  mutilation  (see  above).  In  z>.  2 
1^<DD  =  ^^<^  ti^lD;  TX;::  =  DiJ^.  The  dlttography  in  V.  3  is  manifest. 
The  unexplained  and  inexplicable  DOT ,  like  m~in3  and  d'^IJ^D  ,  is  a 
perfectly  regular  corruption  of  [□''j'^Ni^nT'-  Note  Paseks  after  the  first 
niinj  and  after  m^pI^D  •  The  latter  word  might  have  come  from 
D'' /NDH"!^ ,  but  as  we  require  a  verb,  we  must  look  for  the  nearest 
possible  verb.  Omitting  Q  as  due  perhaps  to  dittography,  and  D  as 
arising  perhaps  from  a  mistaken  assumption  that  the  preceding  T  was 
abbreviated  from  JT)  (plur.  ending),  we  get  "hp,  i-e-  ^'PS  •  In  D''2")  Wl2 
and  Dnnh?  we  have  three  corruptions  of  Q^Q.")!^.  'Vi2  is  too  trans- 
parent to  need  comment.  "^^^}  =  H^JJ,  cp.  Ex.  xv.  6, 11.  Note  Pasek 
after  ^^Jll^,  plainly  a  corruption  of  "^Mii^y  (Isa.  xxv.  i) ;  cp.  Job  x.  3 
Jl^V  from  rqV,  (Gr.)  ;  Ps.  xxix.  2,  M  /T1in3,  G  S  j-niin^-  I^^lp 
may  come  from  D'l^n  ;  the  idiom  thus  becomes  more  natural.  Such 
interchanges  of  letters  are  abundantly  paralleled.  That  mSJ  is  wrong, 
is  very  evident. 

PSALM   XCIV. 

1  o  understand  the  material  which  comes  before  us  as  Ps.  xciv.we  must  undo  the 
work  of  the  redactor.  Reluctant  as  one  may  be  to  admit  this,  it  is  a  perfectly 
necessary  hyjiolhesis  that  our  Ps.  xciv.  is  made  up  of  two  psalms,  both  in 
trimeters,  and  both  dealing  with  the  problem  of  the  oppression  of  Israel,  but 
differint;  in  this  important  respect,  that  while  xciv.  ''  calls  upon  Yahwc  for 
immciliate  vengeance,  and  records  a  moment  of  despairing   scepticism,    xciv.C- 


PSALM  xciv.  gr 

rebukes  the  'dullards'  who  fell  into  this  error,  and  gives  fruitful  suggestions  for 
the  justification  of  the  divine  dealings.  The  latter  psalm,  which  may  be  regarded 
as  a  correction  of  the  former,  also  assures'  Israelites  that  Yahvve  cannot  forsake 
his  people,  as  the  continued  existence  of  Israel  provisionally  shows.  The  true 
believer  will  not  give  way  even  to  the  strongest  temptation.  Yahwe  always 
interposes  in  time,  and  the  final  extirpation  of  Israel's  foes,  which  will  be  the 
supreme  and  decisive  theodicy,  will  not  be  refused  to  the  prayers  of  the  believing 
community.  According  to  Duhm,  Ps.  xciv.  (as  a  whole)  belongs  to  a  group  of 
psalms  (including  Ivi.  — lix.,  Ixxxii.,  cxl.)  in  which  the  party  of  the  Sadducees  and 
the  reigning  Asmonx-an  family  are  attacked,  especially  on  the  ground  of  their  gross 
misconduct  as  judges  and  rulers.  This,  however,  is  based  on  the  incorrect  Massoretic 

text ;    Duhm  even  lets  the  phrase  Jliin   ^D3  (j'.  20)  and  the  not  less  improbable 

context  pass  uncriticized.  The  fearless  critic  of  the  text  of  Job  should  not  have 
treated  us  so  badly,  and  such  an  able  exegete  should  have  scrupled  at  giving  this 
annotation  on  D^IJ  in  t'.  10  (which  certainly  seems  to  prove  that  the  foes  spoken  of 
are,  either  in  part  or  altogether,  foreigners).  'The  meaning  is,  not  the  nations  or 
the  heathen,  but  the  people,  as  is  shown  by  D"Ti^  in  the  parallel.'  Olshausen  is 
at  any  rate  more  plausible  when  he  indicates  as  the  occasion  of  Ps.  xciv.  the  deeds 
of  violence  committed  by  Bacchides  and  Alkimos  according  to  I  Mace.  vii.  8  ff.,  ix- 
23  ff.  Cp.  OP  72,  where  the  cruel  conduct  of  the  soldiery  of  Artaxerxes  Ochus  is 
proposed  as  an  alternative  ;  also  Delitzsch,  p.  647,  who  suggests  the  later  Persian 
period.  The  psalm,  however,  should  be  explained  precisely  as  such  parallel 
psalms  as  Ixxxiii.  and  xcii.     See  on  Ps.  Ixxxiii. 

XCIV. —  I. 

I         O  God  of  vengeance,  Yahwe,  I 

O  God  of  vengeance,  shine  forth  ! 

Lift  thee  up,  thou  Judge  of  the  earth,  2 

Give  their  due  to  the  traitors  ! 

O  Yahwe  !  how  long  shall  the  wicked,  3 

How  long  shall  the  wicked  exult  ? 

The  Arabians  speak  insolently,  4 

All  the  clans  of  On  plot  craftily. 

Thy  people,  O  Yahwe  !  they  crush  ;  5 

10       Thine  inheritance  they  afflict  ; 

The  widow  and  the  orphan  they  sla}-,  6 

The  sojourners  they  butcher. 

In  league  are  Cush  and  Maacath,  20 

Missur,  Ishmael,  and  Jerahmeel  ; 

They  are  passionate  against  the  soul  of  the  righteous,        21 
They  plot  together  [against]  innocent  blood. 

And  I  said,  '  Yahwe  doth  not  see,  7 

Jacob's  God  doth  not  observe  ; 

Who  will  rise  up  for  me  against  the  Misrites  ?  16 

20       Who  will  stand  forth  lor  nie  against  the  clans  of  On  ? ' 


9?  THE    PSALMS. 

XCIV. — 2. 

I         O  ye  dullards  among  the  people,  be  observant !  8 

0  ye  fools,  when  will  ye  understand  ? 

He  who  stretched  forth  the  ear,  can  he  not  hear  ?  9 

He  who  formed  the  eye,  can  he  not  regard  ? 
He  who  possesses  the  nations,  can  he  not  punish  ?  10 

Can  he  not  teach  Edom  knowledge  ?' 

Happy  the  man  whom  thou  disciplinest,  O  Yahwe  !  12 

And  teachest  out  of  thy  law, 

To  be  quiet  before  evil-doers,  13 

10       Until  the  pit  be  dug  for  the  ungodly. 

For  Yahwe  will  not  abandon  his  people,  14 

He  will  not  forsake  his  inheritance  ; 

For  the  righteous  will  3'et  trample  on  the  Zarephathites,       1 5 

And  all  the  Ishmaelites  will  be  cut  off. 

Unless  Yahwe  had  been  my  help,  17 

1  should  have  become  a  dweller  in  the  Gloomy  Land. 

If  I  say,  'My  foot  wavers,'  18 

Thy  lovingkindness,  O  Yahwe  !  holds  me  up. 
When  anguish  within  me  is  great,  19 

20       Thy  consolations  delight  my  soul. 

Let  Yahwe  be  to  me  a  sure  retreat,  22 

Let  my  God  be  my  rock  of  refuge  ; 

Let  him  requite  them  for  their  wrong-doing,  23 

And  extirpate  them  for  their  wickedness.- 

xciv.'i'  2.  Shine    fortb,   ^^31(1 ,  17-20.     The  complaint  of  believers 

the   language   of  theophanies    (see  on  Y^°  for  a  moment  have  lost  their  faith 

1_  2).  (cp,  on  Ixxui.  II  tf.,cxvi.  II).      '\ah- 

we  is  blind  or  unobservant,  and  there 

II  f.     The   phrases   '  widow,'    '  or-  is  no  human  champion  of  my  right.' 
phan,'  '  sojourner,'  are  to  be  explained 
symbolically.     They  are  meant  to  sug- 
gest  the   helpless   condition  of   Israd.  xciv.':i)     i    ff.     A  rebuke  to  those 
Cp.  X.  14,  18,  Ixviii.  6,  cxlvi.  9.  who  are  represented  by  xciv.^D,  //.  17- 

20.     It   is    Israel  who  is  unobservant, 

13  f.     Cp.  on  Ixxxiii.  6,  xcii.  8  f. —  not    Israel's   God.      First,    the   writer 

15  f.    7'/ie  rii:;hteoiis,  innocent  blood,  i.e.  appeals  to  the  argument  from  analogy, 

members   of  the   pious  Israelite   com-  '  God  (you  admit)  planned  and  made 

munity  who  are  basely  slain.  the  curious  mechanism  of  hearing  and 

'  Yahwe  will  make  the  clans  of  Edom  to  know  that  they  are  but  vanity  (r.  II). 
^  Yahwe  our  God  will  extirpate  tiiem. 


PSALM    XCIV 


93 


seeing;  is  it  possible  tiiat  he  himself  is  7-10.     It    is  douhtcd    whether  the 

without   the    faculties    which    he   gave       <„,„„»  /■-^"^^^   ^1  r  •     .l 

:)     HT     ^    u  *    1  .u  •  "^^"     (  i-lJ)   spoken  of  is  the   pious 

you?     Must   he   not   hear   those   cries  _vv  ^ 

and  see  those  outrages    which  ye,  his  Israelite   in    general    or    the    Israelite 

creatures,  see  and  hear  ?  '     It   is   much  community.       Probably  Smend  is  right 

less  probable  that  Israel's  unprincipled  {ZATIV,  18S8,  p.   128)  in  taking  the 

rulers  are  addressed  (Uuhm,  comparing  latter     view,     cp.     Lam.    iii.     i,    ''^Ji^ 

Ixxxii.  5,  xiv.  O ;   ^V3.  can  only  mean  ^-»_        ,           , 

■^'        T  T                -^  iJilil ,  where  the  commuinty  speaks, 

'in    the    people   at    large.'     Then   the  ''\'''~  ,    .1    .    , 

psalmist  passes  on  to  Israelite  theology.  '^"'^  "^^e  that  the  person  who  says,  '  If 
The  'nations'  belong  to  Yahwe  (Vs.  ^  '^y'  fy  foot  wavers  '  &c.  (//.  17  f.), 
xlvii.,  &c.);  can  he  fail  to  punish  them  \^  ^.•^^'^'7  ""^  ^^^o  has  learned  Yahwe's 
when  they  violate  his  holy  heritage?  Jovmgkindness  to  Israel  from  his  law. 
Edom  in  particular  -  for  the  poet  ^  '^'.^  precious  volume  is  in  fact  the 
means  the  nations  of  N.  Arabia,  shall  he  "'"^'nary  channel  of  the  divine  discipline 
not  learn  from  Yahwe  that  of  which  his  or  admonition  ODTtD).  The  legal  and 
own  wise  men  (Jer.  xlix.  7)  are  igno-  prophetic  Tora  both  inculcate  the 
rant— the  duty  of  reverence  for  Yahwe  doctrine  that  sooner  or  later  punish- 
andYahwe's people?  Theglossin -'.  1 1  „-,ent  will  overtake  the  wicked,  who 
(see  margin)  closely  resembles  part  of  ^111  fall  into  the  very  'pit'  which  he 
a  gloss  in  Ps.  ix.-x.  (ix.  21,  end)  which  ^ade  for  others, 
incidentally  throws  light  on  our  pas- 
sage, because  'Jerahineel'  is  the  16.  The  Gloomy  Iiand,  i.e. 
parallel  to  '  the  nations.'  Sheol  (as  cxv.  17).     See  crit.  note. 

Critical  Notes.  xciv.dJ.  4.  M  W^^-  Read  D'^l.^i  (see  on  ix.  6).— 
7.  M  i^^"'42-  Read  probably  W'S'\V  (see  on  lix.  8)'.— 8.  M  n;3hir)\ 
G  \akT](jovui.  Bii.,  'talk  together';  BDB,  'talk  proudly';  Driver, 
'  bear  themselves  loftily.'  All  very  improbable.  We  might  read  ^"13,pn^ 
(Ixxxviii.  21,  &c.),  but  this  would  be  too  strong.  Read  probably  iri^j)^ 
'deal  craftily'  (Ixxxiii.  4,  with  IID).— M  ]1J<  '''^PD"'??).  Read  probably 
lij^  'DJ7K~':'3  (see  on  xcii.  8).— 11  f.  Fo^  nil  read  DijI^T,  and  for 
DV0^J1''T  read  D^:)!  (Gr.).  The  order  as  in  Ge.  n:^'??^  "and  i:)  are 
never  combined. 

I3f.  M  jliirr  h}D3  ^n^n^rr.  G,  fj.))  awTrpoa-ea-Tai  a-oidpovos  dvofj.lai; 
J,  nuinqiiid  pai-ticeps  crit  tiii  thronus  insidiariini.  WF.,  '  has  the_  throne 
of  wickedness  thee  for  an  ally  ' ;  Hitz.,  Ba.,  '  can  the  throne  of  destruction 
ally  itself  to  thee  ?'  The  clause  itself,  and  each  word  in  it,  are  suspicious, 
(i)  The  form  '^n^  cannot  be  satisfactorily  explained;  see  Kon.  i.  257, 
ii.  2S4a  ;  Ges.*^''^,  §  63  m  ;  Perles,  Anal.  74;  (2)  JlTin  ND3  is  most 
improbable.  j~iiin  12^  (xci.  3^^)  is  possible,  because  Diiri  describes 
the  nature  of  the  ~)1"T  ;  this  cannot  be  said  of  JllTn  ND3 .  ^Vhy  did 
not  the  writer  say  H/l]/  KDD  ?  (3)  The  use  of  ND3  for  '  one  seated  on 
the  tribunal '  is  e.xtremely  awkward.  (4)  Verse  20,  as  commonly  under- 
stood, does  not  fit  into  the  context  ;  nor  is  there  any  part  of  the  psalm 
where  it  can  conveniently  be  placed.  In  such  circumstances  we  have 
before  now  found  that  the  text  disguises  and  distorts  ethnic  names. 
Assuming  this  to  be  the  case  here,  two  names  at  once  suggest  themselves 
in  V.  20a  and  6  respectively,  viz.  ^3  for  DD,  and  '^hJ^^r^'^i'"'  or  ^N.^m^ 
for  "^D^-     Two  other  ethnics  are  possible,  and  become  even  probable, 


94  THE    PSALMS. 

through  their  juxtaposition  with  groups  of  letters  more  distinctly  intel- 
ligible. The  first  word  in  7'.  20a  might  come  either  from  ^n^H  (Gen.  xiv. 
3)  or  from  ^n^irT*.  The  former  suits  the  context  best.  Taking  the  J>} 
in   M's    ^<DD  with  jniil,  we   get   m^^^^.     We   may  plausibly  correct 

this    into    jTjnS,    ?>•    TlDSVOLl]-      Passing    on    now    to    /.    14,    "i::> 

T  -:  - 
presumably  comes   from   ~n^,   i.e.  HHQ  (see   on    Ixxxiii.  8^),   and   the 

unintelligible  pJlwl^  from   '^hJDm"'.     Thus   the  whole  couplet  (which 

probably  stood  between  ?'.  6  and  7'.  7  till  the  supplementer,  for  editorial 

purposes,  put  it  elsewhere)  should  probably  run  (cp.  xcii.  /.  13), — 

T-:-  :  T 

15  f.  M  ^liT.  Read  ITill''  (see  on  Ivi.  6).— M  lyi^rij .  Read 
M  ^^irri;  (Ivi.  6). 

17.  M  '^"^!tD^^''^.  'The  wickedness  breaks  out  in  words  expressing 
the  usual  fancy  of  immunity  from  punishment  (cp.  x.  11,  13),  which  is 
then  refuted  in  7>7'.  8  ff.'  (Hupfeld).  The  objection  is  that  v.  8  expressly 
refers  not  to  those  who  '  crush  '  and  '  afflict '  Yahwe's  people,  but  to  a 
section  of  that  very  people,  that  v.  10  as  expressly  relates  to  God's 
conduct  towards  the  nations  as  something  which  is  misunderstood  by  the 
unintelligent  Israelites,  and  that  7>v.  12-15  contain  the  assurance  that 
Yahwe  will  not  forsake  his  people,  for  the  pit  of  retribution  will  soon  be 
dug  for  the  wicked.  Evidently  there  is  an  error  in  the  text;  for  an  exact 
parallel  see  Ixxiii.  11.  The  true  reading  must  be  ~l!p j«}1 .  Cp. '»jn"i:;3hJ , 
7/.  18. 

18  f.  Read  probably  -D^l'bv  D1|T"\9  •— M  D'V"}^ ,  V.i^  'b^B  • 
Read  WT^D  (xxvii.  3,  Ixiv.  3),  ]1J<  ^^bii  (see  on  /.  8).       '        * 

xciv.*-'  I.  Read  perhaps  J^J  ^T3.  (Bi.)  ;  G  avpere  S17.  h^J  would 
fall  out  after  1J  . 

3.  M  y'lDJn.  Read  n*L3in  (Gr.).  Cp.  Isa.  ii.  16,  where  for_J_;bj  read 
n'iD2  (Houb."). 

5.  AI  "ID'TT  .  Du.,  "ID^i^DH .  But  a  recognition  of  God  as  the 
universal  Teacher  is  not  to  be  expected  here.  According  to  /.  7  it  is  the 
righteous  Israelite  whom  Yahw6  '  disciplines.'  Read,  not  liJ^n  as  We. 
and  Roy,  p.  58,  for  an  obvious  reason  (see  /.  4),  but  liTTH.  It  is  as  the 
possessor  of  the  nations,  not  as  their  former,  that  Yahwo  punishes  them. 

6.  M  DV^   D1^J    IDS'jn .     Neither  in  sense  nor  in  form   is   this 

-  T         TT  ••-  :  - 

clause  satisfactory.  The  D''i;i  of  /.  5  are  evidently  the  hostile  nations 
(as  l.xxix.  i,lx.xx.  9,  Si'c.),  but  whether  QliV  can  be  limited  to  Israel's 
enemies  is  extremely  doubtful.     Having  regard  to  vv,  4,  20,  we  should 


PSALM    XCIV. 


95 


almost  certainly  read  Ulii  (xc.  3).  But  the  form  of  the  clause  still 
requires  amendment.  There  is  only  one  remedy  ;  it  is  a  perfectly 
possible  one,  and  it  also  improves  the  sense.  Read  Qij^  lQ'^^~k^'?n 
nVI  •  Nearly  so  Wellh.,  but  he  weakens  the  case  for  l^'?^  J^^il  by 
retaining  QT^} . 

TT 

Now  as  to  the  j^'-Zoss  in  v.  11.  Why  should  any  one  have  cared  to 
make  the  trivial  comment, 'Yahwe  knows  that  the  devices  of  man  are 
but  vanity'?  Sense  is  restored  by  reading,  D'lJ^  DiHSli^D  J71^  [^HV] 
b2'n  nBH^^D-     The  '  devices  '  of  the  enemy   are   wicked;    the   enemy 

V  T  T    ••         •  ■' 

himself  is  vain,  riQiTO  is  a  '  constructio  ad  sensum.' 

9.  M  ;?n  >ryr2  ^b  tO'pI^nS  Very  difficult,  'il^'pwnb  indeed  is 
plain  ;  it  is  the  lesson  which  the  Torah  constantly  teaches  (cp.  Isa.  vii,  4 
XXX.  15).  But  why  ^b  ?  and  why  p")  ''Q\:2  ?  We  should  expect  the  line 
to  describe  the  circumstances  which  make  this  lesson  difficult  to 
practice.  Line  10  suggests  that  these  circumstances  are  the  prosperity  of 
the  wicked,  for  whom  the  '  pit '  of  ruin  has  not  yet  been  visibly  '  duo- '  and 
the  adversity  of  the  righteous.     Read  D'^lu)  ''^ib  '^rb,  and  compare 

xxxix.  2.  That  ''J3'7  should  become  !2'\'7  is  pal^ographically  very 
possible,  and  for  the  corruption  j;~)  \^''  we  have  a  parallel  in  xlix.  6. 

13  f.  M  is  rendered  by  Driver,  '  For  judgment  shall  return  unto 
righteousness  (from  which  it  is  now  divorced,  V2'.  20,  21)' ;  by  ll^jF  '  For 
in  the  end  must  judgment  be  given  for  righteousness '  ;  by  Duhm,  '  For 
the  rule  will  once  more  turn  to  the  righteous '  (pH^),  z'-^-  to  the  Pharisees. 
But  is  such  a  forced  expression  in  the  psalmist's  style  ?  Duhm's  p^lJJ 
(so  S  2)  is  doubtless  right,  but  much  more  correction  is  required.  Read 
D^nSlii  D^n^^pHi:  ni;~^3  C^^'^D  =  '•:£,  as  vli.  7,  Ezek.  vii.  23).  G 
agrees  with  M,  except  that  tcos  ov  presupposes  ^3    Tl^. 

14.  M  2b  ''~}'^]'b3  VinjvJI,  '  and  all  the  upright  in  heart  [shall  go] 
after  it'  [or,  as  Du.,  'after  him'],  but  we  need  a  verb  to  correspond  to  the 
verb  in  /.  13.  Wellh.  suggests  3^  ''~}p''b  J■^^"lrT^<^  (cp.  xxxvii.  37),  but 
the  parallelism  produced  is  insufficient.  '  The  text  must  be  corrupt,  and 
on  the  analogy  of  32':'  n3  (Ixiii.  i),  ^b  n''3^f  (Ixxvi.  6),  and  nn"  2b 
(Ixxxiii.  6)  for  DvJ^l^ri')"'  we  should   most  probably  read  'b2   ^TTID"! 

a^t'WQ'^v  ''       ''"■ 

16.  iiai^r^D  and  n:2')l  both  probably  come  from  Jliro'^Cli:],  If 
nr^^^,  'silence,'  were  one  of  the  synonyms  for  t'lJ^li^,  why  is  it  never 
found  in  Job?  niD^JJ,  on  the  other  hand,  is  common  in  Job,  and 
occurs  four  times  in  Pss.  (M).  H/^i'll  occurs  again,  it  is  true,  in  cxv.  17, 
apparently  for  b^iiV ,  but  when  one  of  these  already  corrupt  passages 
had  convinced  the  editor  that  Sheol  might  be  designated  Dumah,  it  was 
natural   that   he  should    introduce  this   supposed  name   into    the  other 


96  THE    PSALMS. 

passage.  In  both  places  G  has  abt]{s),  which  in  Job  xxxviii.  17  =  jn^7i{. 
non  represents  JIV^"?  ;  iOiTJJD  comes  from  D'^dj ,  i-c  lydri  (cp. 
error  in  Ixxiii.  2).  'i{,  therefore,  was  dittographed  ;  or  rather  a  badly 
written  'iJ  was  corrected. 

19.  M  ^B^ir^r.  Read  ""y^yi  (G  S,  Gr.).  "^^  is  usually  identified 
with  D'Dyii.'  (Job  iv.  13,  XX.  2)  ='a"'3i*P  (i  K.  xviii.  21).  Cp.  Kon.,  ii.  i, 
p.  472.  All  very  doubtful.  In  i  K.  read  D'DD  (Klo.  ;  cp.  Che., /2^,  x. 
568  f. ;  Jastrow, /5Z,  xvii.  108  fif.).  The  Job  passages  cannot  be  treated 
here.     See  also  on  cxix.  113,  cxxxix.  23. 

21.  M  \T'T  ;  so  G;  cp.  Hitzig.  Rather  M^  (Gr.).  Cp.  ix.  10.— 
23.  I\I  3^i7^^ .'  Rather  2l^^1  (Gr.)  ;  G  dn-oSwcret.  Omit  repetition  at 
end  of  psalm. 


PSALM    XCV.— I. 

I  RIMETERS.  Rejoicing  in  the  recovery  of  its  land,  to  which  the  N.  Arabian 
border-land  has  been  added  (cp.  Obadiah),  Israel  invites  its  members  to  praise 
Yahwc.     The  psalm  is  eschatological. 

I  Come,  let  our  cries  ring  unto  Yahwe,  I 

Let  us  acclaim  the  Roclv  which  succours  us  ; 
Let  us  come  before  his  face  with  thanksgiving,  2 

Let  us  exult  unto  him  with  chanting  •} 

\\\  whose  hand  are  the  farthest  parts  of  the  land,  4 

Whose  are  the  mountain-ranges, 

Whose  is  Jerahmeel — he  made  it,  5 

Ishmael — his  hands  formed  it. 

Enter  ye,  let  us  worship,  let  us  bow  down,  6 

10  Before  Yahwb  our  God  let  us  bend  the  knee, 

For  he  made  us  and  led  us  on —  7 

The  flock  of  his  tending  and  his  people. 

5  f .     Cp.  Isa.  viii.  9,  Jcr.  viii.    19.  is  a  proof  of  omnipotence.     N.  Arabia, 

The  geography  is  archaislic.     The  poet  otherwise    Jerahmeel    or    Ishmael,    is 

has    heard    of    the    old    kingdom    of  emphatically     a     mountainous      land. 

Meluhha    (=  Jerahmeel  ?),    of    which  Hence,  in  Ixv.    5,    6,    the   mention  of 

that  of'Missur  was  a  vassal,  and  which  Misrim  and  Jerahmeel  at  once  suggests 

seems     to    have    extended    as    far    as  a  reference  to  mountains. 
Midian  (Wincklerj.    Perhaps,  however, 

the  mountains  in  the  Negeb  itself  may  il-     He    made    us.    In  a  special 

have  been  regarded   as   relatively  dis-  sense  (as  c.  3,  cxlix.  2,  Isa.  xlni.   21, 

tant.     The  creation  of  these  mountains  xliv.  2,  Dt.  xxxii.  6,  15). 

>  For  Yahwc  is  a  great  God,  |  a  great  king  above  Jerahmeel  {v.  3). II 


PSALM    XCV. — I,  2.  97 

Critical  Notes.    Verse  3  interrupts,  and  seems  to  have  been  a  marginal 
note  (see  on  xcvi.  4  f.).     In  /.  4,  for  j;nj  read  perhaps  H'^^JJ  (Du.). 

5.  M  ''"1pn^2  ;  fl  "^-  '^fy-  'a  (.^lyviaa^n'i  ;  2  fcarcornru  ;  J  '  funda- 
menta.'  '  Lucus  a  non  lucendo.'  See  Jer.  xxxi.  37  (Ba.)-  G,  by  a  good 
guess,  ro  Tre'para.  Ba.,  "pm^  (Isa.  viii.  9). — M  Q"'"!,"!  niDyij"l  ■  Surely 
□■""nn  answers  to  the  intention  of  the  editor,  who  supposes  a  quotation 

"T  ....  .  .  ,     „  ,      ^ 

from  Num.  xxiii-  2,  xxiv.  8.     G,  guessing  again,  ta  v\j/r]  twv  optoii/.     Read 
Dnn   j-li£)j-13  (cp.  Isa.  xi.  14). 

•  T  :   • 

7  f.  M  D^~f  •  l^ead  'p^}^.^^T  (cp.  on  Ixv.  6,  l.xx.Kix.  26).— M  /lli'T- 
Read  biiV'2Z^^  (cp.  on  Ixvi.  6). 

9  f.  Transpose  I^Ii/J/  (pointing  ^^)U),')  and  IJTl'^^^  •  This  is  con- 
firmed by  c.  3,  where  the  quotation  gives  the  right  order,  and  also 
establishes  our  next  correction,  viz.  !li'?nr"l  for  IJHJhiT .  It  is  possible, 
however,  that  when  xcv.'i'  and  xcv.'-'  were  combined,  the  editor  found 
the  incorrect  reading  IjrT'J^T ,  'and  brought  us  to  rest'  (Ex.  xxxiii.  14, 
Isa.  Ixiii.  14?),  and  devised'  a  contrast  between  the  ancient  Israelites 
whom  God  refused  to  bring  to  the  '  rest '  of  Canaan,  and  the  pious 
community  which  actually  lives  in  Canaan,  and  looks  forward  to  more 
perfect  rest  when  Yahwe  shall  interpose  in  its  behalf.  For  iD^^irj  Qy 
iN^ilT  read  iajTT  i/T'^nrp  ]J^:i  (so  partly  Bi.)  ;  see  Ixxix.  13. 


PSALM     XCV.— 2. 

1  Ri METERS.     A  warning  against  imitatinj;  the  disobedience  of  the  forefathers. 
Cp.  the  last  crit.  note  on  xciv."' 

I                   Yahwe  Elohim  [speaks]  ;  7^ 

O  that  ye  would  hear  his  voice  !  "id 

Harden  not  your  heart  as  at  Meribah,  8 
As  on  the  day  of  Marisah  in  the  wilderness, 

Where  your  fathers  tried  me,  9 
Proved  me,  and  yet  liad  seen  my  doing. 

Forty  years  I  had  a  loathing  10 

For  ^.such+  a  froward  and  defiant  race  ; 
They  were  a  people  of  erring  heart, 
10  And  were  ignorant  oi"  my  \va}s, 

So  that  I  swore  in  mine  anger,  11 

Never  shall  they  come  to  my  resting-place. 

2.     Cp.  Ixxxi.  9<^. — 3  f.    Meribah  .  .        xx.    i  (T. — 7  tf.     See  Num.   xiv.'2r   ff. 
A/assaA.     Cp.  Ex.   xvii.    i   ff.      Num. 

11.  H 


gS  THE    PSALMS. 

Critical  Notes.  \.  M  Di^Q  "W ,  miswritten  for  D^'^'?^i  mHV 
Parallel  cases,  n''  for  mriN  Ixxvii.  3  ;  QV  and  r)];'  for  D\"T'?hJ  in  Ixviii. 
20.  Prefix  -13"^  (1.  i).— 8.  M's  "1DST  should  be  Hl^l  ;  the  divine 
speech  comes  later.  Supply  "lib  (Ixxviii.  8).  For  "1113,  CI  gives 
Ti)  yevia  (Kfivt];  T  J>}13"T^  hi"1"I3  •  Makeshifts  which  now  become 
unnecessary. 


PSALM    XCVI. 

1  ETRAMETKRS  interspersed  with  trimeters.  The  theme  of  xcv.fi'  is  resumed, 
but  the  closest  parallel  is  Ps.  xxix.,  where,  as  here,  the  Jerahmeelites  who  are  left 
after  the  judgment  are  summoned  to  recognize  their  mighty  and  righteous 
sovereign,  Vahwe,  by  worship  and  offerings  in  the  temples,  also  by  recounting 
Yahwe  s  glorious  deeds  to  more  distant  peoples.  Like  its  companion  psalms, 
Ps.  xcvi.  has  been  recast  by  an  editor,  so  as  to  adapt  it  for  later  use.  In  its 
adapted  form  it  has  been  used  in  I  Chr.  xvi.  23-33.  Cp.  Isa.  xlii.  10-12  (and 
notes  in  Cril.  Bib.).  The  additional  verse  (13)  occurs  again  with  a  slight 
alteration  at  the  end  of  Ps.  xcviii.  As  Duhm  remarks,  it  may  be  derived  in  both 
psalms  from  the  temple  ritual. 

1         Sing  to  Yahwe  a  song  that  is  new,  i 

Sing  to  Yahwe,  all  ye  in  the  land  ; 

Sing  to  Yahwe,  O  ye  of  Ishmael,  2 

Proclaim  his  deliverance,  O  ye  of  Jerahmeel  ; 
Tell  of  his  glory  among  the  nations,  3 

His  wonders  among  all  the  peoples. 

For  Yahwe  is  great  and  highly  to  be  praised,  4 

Terrible  is  he  towards  ail  those  of  Ishmael. 
For  [to  him  belong]  all  the  Jerahmeelites,  5 

10       It  is  Yahwe  who  made  Ishmael. 

State  and  splendour  are  before  him,  6 

Strength  and  magnificence  are  in  his  sanctuary. 

Ascribe  to  Yahwe,  O  ye  families  of  the  Aramites,  7 

Ascribe  to  Yahwb  glory  and  strength  ; 

Ascribe  glory  to  Yahwe,  O  ye  of  Ishmael,  8 

Bring  oflFerings,  and  enter  his  courts  ; 

Worship  Yahvv^,  O  Rehoboth  and  Cush  !  9 

Exult  before  him,  all  ye  in  the  land. 

Extol  Yahwe,  O  ye  of  Jerahmeel,  lo 

20       Yea,  bend  the  knee,  O  Tubal  and  Maacath^  ; 

'  lie  will  judge  the  peoples  uprightly. 


PSALM    XCVI.  99 

Let  Ishmael  and  Missur  rejoice,  ii 

Let  those  of  Jerahmeel  sing  praise  ; 

With  the  sound  of  the  horn  let  Asshur  exult,  12 

Yea,  with  the  sound  of  the  trumpet  let  him  shout  for  joy.  1 


I.     lyin  I^V,  as  xcviii.  i.      See  said  that  Y"li<in"7D  has  here  (and  in 

»    .'»-».\-,-U-v  I  Ml  c.  l)  a  weakened  sense.    The  supposed 

xxxni.  3.-2.  yiNn    /J  •  All  ye              ^                           >                         ^  ^ 

"TT      T  analogy  of  "1li'^~7D ,  Joel  iii.  i,  can- 


in  the  land'  is  better  than   'all  man-  not  be  safely  urged  (see  Crit.  Bib.). 
kind'  (Duhm,   «//^^F£//)    because   of  ^  f_     ^p.    cxlv.   3,    xlviii.  2;   also 

the   references  to  N.    Arabian    peoples  ^     Cf1oss'>        1  i'      1   12      X\1 

in   the    sequel.     Israel    and    his    new  -,«.»£  _;^     V '    ^^..^  V    ^'  •     ^jJ  1 

1  X  ..      -vT  %  1  il  iN3r) ,  as  Ixxvni.  61. 

proselytes  are   meant.     Nor  can  it  be  '     ./.,.;*." 

Critical  Notes.  3.  M  i^Ii^  0")^  •  In  accordance  with  DV'?~DVr.D 
in  V.  lb.  But  this,  as  we  shall  see,  must  be  altered  ;  consequently  'ti'  '3 
also  needs  revision.  With  the  other  psalms  of  this  group  before  us,  it  is 
probable  that  IDH^  represents  D'''7?^r2n")'',  and  that  yCi^  has  come  from 
D'''?Ny/2li^^  •  Of  these  variants  the  latter  is  of  course  to  be  preferred 
(on  account  of/.  4). 

4-     DT^DVa,    hke    DV    DV    in    Ixi.    9    is    a    makeshift.      Read 

8.  M  D^n'7S"'7D"'71^  •  This  vague  statement  that  Yahwe  is  terrible 
in  his  superiority  to  all, other  divinities  is  not  probable.  The  wonderful 
works  spoken  of  in  /.  6  are  such  as  human  beings  have  experience  of. 

Read  D^^^<!:^^■)^"':'D"':'i'  (cp.  ixvi.  5). 

9  f.  Here  and  in  xcvii.  7,  M's  DvvS  should  put  us  on  our  guard 
(cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on  Isa.  ii.  20).  'All  the  gods  of  the  nations  are  idols'  (the 
rendering  'vain'  is  forced)  is  a  gross  tautology.  Hence  G  substitutes 
nn^,  haiixovia.  Comparing  xcv.  5^,  read  D'''?N;2nn^"';'D  w^'2-,  and  in 
/.  loVor  Wiy^  read  ^)^'^]yD'' . 

13,  15.  For  □"ai?  read  2"'D"lh^ ,  and  for  X2V  read  b'^^^'CiV  (see  on 
xxix.  I,  3). 

17.  AI  li^lf)  niTrrZl .  We  cannot  read  j"lh^n3  (cp.  G)  on  account 
of  /.  16.  Parallelism  and  the  frequent  confusion  of  ^"Tp  and  ti/lD 
suggest  ^131  jl'lQfTl.  This  of  course  determines  the  right  reading  in 
xxix.  lb. 

19.  M  T|S*.3  mn''  Ws^l  IlI^^J  •  The  context,  however,  requires 
bSQn'T'n    mK^   ["/li^]    ^i::??*!  •     For  the  correction  of  nOh<  cp.  xvi.  2. 

20.  M  inmrrb'^  bir\  P^jT^NN  but  G  2  J  read  ]Dn  (defectively); 
cp.  on  xciii.  i.     Read  riD^'JT   bir\  ^^'y^PT'^  •     Cp.  on  xciii.  i. 

•  Before  Vahwe,  for  he  is  come  to  judge  the  earth  ;  he  will  judge  the  world 
in  righteousness,  and  the  peoples  in  his  faithfulness  (c'.  13). 


100  THE    PSALMS. 

21.  Read  probably  "llii^")  S^J^^.'^t:?''  in^i:^V  yii^ ,  as  often,  may 
represent  "ITU^;  b^D  (cp.  xcvii.  i)  appears  to  have  come  from  a  ditto- 
graphed  bin. 

22.  DTI  and  Mihi2  (cp.  Ixxxix.  12)  both  represent  [D'']'?Sr.2n~)V 
pyi^  may  come  from  ^It^V  . 

23  f.  M  U"1i:^S"':'D'l  n^-  Read  -|3V^  b')p3.  -]ti^.—Ws  ^  should 
probably  be  r|J^  (Ivi,  10)  ;  so  Ol.,  Gr.,  Bi.,  Che.^'',  Du.,  though  it  may  be 
a  corrupt  fragment  of  17^''  (written  in  error).  Continue  '^Ip^l  ]31^ 
n"12{!krr .  Cp.  xcviii.  6.  13/^~^iii^~'7D  is  strange  ;  we  should  at  least 
expect  definite  trees  to  be  mentioned  as  representatives. 

In  7'.  13  (cp.  xcviii.  9)  ^}J2  O  is  dittographed. 


PSALM   XCVII. 

1  RIMETERS.  Still  the  same  theme — Vahwe,  in  fact  as  well  as  in  ri;^ht,  sovereign 
of  Palestine  and  (north)  Arabia,  and  Arabia  recognizing  her  sovereign  with 
acclamations.  Again  cp.  Isa.  xlii.  10-12,  a  passage  which  enables  us  to  fill  up  a 
lacuna  in  /.  2.  The  later  writers  were  fond  of  descriptions  of  theophanies  (see 
OP,  156,  344,  353) — descriptions  which  have  to  them  merely  a  symbolic  value, 
though  the  truth  behind  the  symbol  was  never  more  firmly  believed  in.  Literary 
reminiscences  abound  in  this  psalm,  which  is  one  of  those  'costly  mosaic  works' 
too  often  overlooked  by  careless  readers  of  Scripture  (Abp.  Trench  on  Rev. 
iii.  1-6). 

I       Yahwe  reigns  ;  let  the  land  exult,  I 

Let  Arabia  [and  Ishmael]  rejoice. 

Clouds  and  darkness  are  around  him,  2 

Righteousness  and  judgment  are  the  base  of  his  throne. 

Fire  consumes  before  him,  3 

And  a  flame  makes  IshmaeU  to  burn  ; 

His  lightnings  illumine  Tubal,  4 

Missur  sees  it  and  is  in  terror. 

The  mountains  melt  like  wax-  5 

10     Before  the  Lord  of  the  whole  earth  ; 

Ishmaelites  declare  his  righteousness,  6 

And  all  the  peoples  see  his  glory. 

Disappointed  are  all  Arabia  and  Ishmael,  7 

Those  of  Jerahmecl  do  homage  unto  him. 
Zion  heard  of  it  and  rejoiced,  8 

The  daughters  of  Judah  exult. 

'  His  adverjaries.  -  Before  Vahwe. 


PSALM    XCVII.  lOI 

Because  of  thy  judgments,  O  Yahwe  ! 

For  thoui  art  sovereign  over-  Edom,  q 

20     Thou  art  exalted  above  all  Jerahmeel. 

Appendix. 
Those  that  hate  evil  doth  Yahwe  love,  *  10 

He  preserves  the  souls  of  his  loyal  ones. 
From  the  hand  of  the  wicked  he  rescues  them. 

Light  rises  for  the  righteous,  1 1 

And  joy  for  the  upright  in  heart. 

Rejoice,  ye  righteous  !  in  Yahwe,  12 

And  give  thanks  to  his  holy  name. 

Comp.  the  theophanies  in  Pss.  xviii.,        Isa.  xxxv.  2,  xl.  5,  lii.  10,  Ixvi.  18,  ivic. 
1.,  Ixxvii.     For  //.  9-12  cp.  Mic.  i.  4,       For  //.  15  f.  cp.  xlviii.  12. 
Zech.  iv.  14,   vi.  5,    Pss.  1.  6,  xcviii.  3, 

Critical  Notes.  2.  ]M  D^^")  D'^h?  •  Both  D''"'J<  and  WITS  occur 
in  the  prophets  as  corruptions  of  D^^"l^. 

5  f.  M  ^bri-  Read  "^Di^n.— Before  ]:^7bT\  insert  nnn^p  (Hare, 
Kenn.)  ;  cp.  Ixxxiii.  15,  cvi.  18.  For  "y^iD  read,  as  elsewhere,  7Sy/2Ii'^. 
Omit  Vl^i  (?  Dn^iD)  as  a  gloss  on  '^>. 

TT 

7  f.     Point  '^^n,  and  for  "]1N[rT]  read,  as  elsewhere,  l-iJ^. 

9,  II.  mn^  ^JH)'?  is  virtually  dittographic. — For  D'^Dti^H  read 
D^V^^;r,!2li>^  (see  1.  6). 

13  f.  According  to  Duhm,  v.  ya  and  b  is  an  'absurd  interpolation.' 
'  The  makers  of  images,  who  boast  of  the  idols,  will  not  be  led  to  doubt 
their  position  by  a  storm  ;  besides  the  interpolation  is  specially  ugly 
before  ?'.  jc,  where  the  D^n'^'i^  are  treated  like  the  Qvhi  ^J21  of  Ps.  xxix. 
("all  gods  worship  him").'  But  experience  of  the  disguises  assumed 
with  considerable  regularity  by  N.  Arabian  ethnics  enables  us  to  detect 
another  text  underneath   the  present  '  absurd  '  passage.     7317  =  31^  '■> 

boH)  =  bi^v^'^^ ;  D^':'':?njn!:,  D^b^':'S[3]   and  wrb'n.  =  Q'bii'2n^^. 

Read  therefore, 

19.  Omit  mrP  (metre)  ;  also  yij^n"'?^,  as  an  insertion  made  at  the 
same  time  when  Q7^{  (Edom)  became  '^^}l2. 

'  O  Vahwe.  -  All  the  earth. 


102  THE    PSALMS. 

21.     Read  2^^<  and  "Xi'liMWe.,  Du.). 

25.  Read  niT  or  n')\  (G  J  S  T)  with  Mich.,  Ol.,  Hu.,  Bi.,  Gr.,  Bii., 
We.,  Du. 

PSALM    XCVIII. 

Jr  ENTAMETERS.  Again  poetical  mosaic-work.  Especially  note  coincidences  with 
Pss.  xcvi.,  Isa.  xliv.  23,  xlix.  13,  lii.  9,  Iv.  12,  lix.  16,  Ixiii.  5.  Cp.  Stade, 
Redai  u.  Abhandl.,  72  (Messianic  hope). 

Marked.     Of  ^Arab-ethan. 

I     Sing  unto  Yahwe  a  new  song,  [  wondrous  things  has  he 

done  ;  i 

His  right  hand  has  made  him  the  victor,  |  his  holy  arm. 
Yahwe  has  made  known  his  victor}^  |  *     *     *  2 

In  the  sight  of  those  of  Jerahmeel  |  he  has  unveiled  his 
righteousness  ; 

He  has  remembered  his  lovingkindnessand  his  faithfulness  | 

to  the  house  of  Israel,  3 

All  the  ends  of  the  land  have  seen  |  the  victory  of  our  God. 
Acclaim  Yahwe,  all  ye  in  the  land,  |  break  into  a  song  of 

joy ;  4 

■     Sing  praise  to  Yahwe  with  the  lyre,  |  with  the  sound  of 

melody.  5 

[Shout  to  him]  with  trumpet-notes,  |  and  with  sound  of 
cornets,  6 

ID  Raise  a  cry  before  [our  God]  |  Yahwe  the  king  ! 

Let  those  of  Jerahmeel  sing  praise,  |  Tubal  and  Ishmael  ;     7 
With  lyres,  with  pipes,  and  with  timbrels,  I  let  the  Jerah- 
meelites  shout  for  joy.^  8 

Critical  Notes.  Title.  M  has  only  n:2T'J,  but  G  adds  rw  ^avuh. 
Either  insert  TCh  or  omit  "n^Tr^- 

4.  M  D^ljn.  The  metre  (which  requires  two  beats)  and  the  context 
(which  points  to  Jerahmeel)  bids  us,  in  accordance  with  parallels,  take 
'jn  as  miswritten  for  D^'^NQnT'  Cl  comes  from  i":^). 

5.  After  llDn  G  inserts  ^pP"''!',  but  this  leaves  too  much  for  the 
short  second  hemistich.  The  Pasek  here  simply  separates  the  two  V 
In  vv.  4  f.  omit  the  first  l")rjT  and  the  second  "11332 • 

'  Before  Yahwe,  for  he  is  come  to  judge  the  earth  ;  he  will  judgi-  the  world 
with  righteousness,  and  the  peoples  with  uprightness  {v.  9). 


PSALMS    XCVIII.    AND   XCIX.  IO3 

9  f.     Prefix  ^H^bbn  (cl.  3).— Insert  ')2'nbii. 

iia.     Read    Q"''?NOm^   ")iar  (see   on    xcvi.,    /.    22),    and   continue, 

'^hil^Q^"'!    bnPt-      D'^2^'',    *2ti'"'    &c.    are    frequently    miswritten    for 
••  T  :  •  :         -  s 

bi^yDV^.     jM  implies  that  '  the  world  '  can  '  thunder  '  like  '  the  sea.' 

12.     M  C]D"1NnrO^  niinj.     in  Isa.  Iv.  12  it  is  the  trees  that  'clap 

their  hands.'  This  is  a  possible  expression  because  branches  are  called 
niD3.  It  could  not,  however,  be  said  that  the  streams  clapped  their 
hands.  Clearly  we  should  read  r^rini  ':'inQ2T  nillilDn  (xcviii.  5, 
cxlix.  3,  cl.  4).     Either  '^^'Hui  =  T^TT  '  pipe,'   or   it  was  miswritten  for 

h'bn.—M  Dnrr  in\   Read  D^'7i^on"iv 

•  T  -- 

PSALM  XCIX. 

JT*  OUR  five-line  stanzas,  each  followed  by  a  refrain  of  two  words.  Stanzas  I  and 
3  consist  entirely  of  tetrameters,  but  in  stanzas  2  and  4  some  lines  are  trimeters. 
Few  psalms,  as  handed  down  by  tradition,  have  given  more  trouble  to  expositors 
than  this.  The  difficidty  lies  in  v.  4  and  vz'.  6-8.  How  is  the  opening  off.  4  to 
be  rendered  ?  And  what  is  the  event  by  which  the  administration  of  justice  has 
been  restored  in  Israel?  Then,  as  to  7'.  6,  why  is  -Moses  called  a  priest?  And 
what  have  Aaron  and  Samuel  to  do  with  the  legislative  communications  (z>.  7) 
between  Yahwe  and  Israel  ?  And  what  were  the  wicked  deeds  which  called  for 
punishment  ?  According  to  Biithgen,  the  present  tenses  in  z'v.  6,  ya  show  that  the 
psalmist's  intention  is  not  to  give  merely  a  historical  retrospect.  Moses  and 
Aaron  and  Samuel  are  heroes  of  prayer,  who  live  again  in  their  spiritual  descen- 
dants, in  so  far  as  these  descendants  pray  as  believingly  as  their  ancestors.  He 
thinks  that  the  suffixes  in  tjv.  7,  8  refer  to  the  entire  category  of  the  IQliJ  'J^Hp 
('callers  upon  his  name'),  i.e.  the  Israelites.  Delitzsch,  too,  is  of  opinion  that 
v.   6c  is  to  be  understood,  not  only  of  Moses,  Aaron,   and  Samuel,  but  of  the 

people  which  as  mediators  they  represented,  so  that  the  /n7^7j7  ('evil  deeds') 
will  be  those  of  the  people.  These  theories,  however  (not  excluding  Wellhausen's, 
who  has  only  one  vigorous  though  too  arbitrary  correction — see  on  z'.  4,  and 
Duhm's,  whose  emendations  of  v.  4  and  z'.  8  are  far  too  slight),  are  based  virtually 
on  the  traditional  text. 

The  psalm  is  parallel  to  Ps.  Ixxxvii.,  Isa.  xix.  18-25,  Zech.  xii.,  xiii.  (see  Cn'L 
Bil>.),  and  the  statement  in  /.  13  is  in  accordance  with  the  probably  correct  text 
of  Isa.  Ixvi.  21.  The  ]:>oet  looks  forward  to  the  time  when  'all  the  peoples  [of 
Palestine  and  N.  Arabia],'  i.e.  all  those  non-Israelites  who  have  not  perished  in 
the  great  judgment,  will  have  become  converted  to  the  true  religion.  The 
expectation  that  some  of  the  Jerahmeeliles,  in  particular,  will  not  only  invoke  the 
name  of  Yahwe,  but  become  his  priests,  has  a  historical  justification,  for  it  is  a 
well-grounded  theory  that  the  Levites  came  historically  from  Jerahmeel  (see 
Eiic.  Bill.,  'Moses').  There  is  no  occasion  to  bring  the  psalm  down  to  the 
period  of  the  forcible  Judaizing  of  the  Idumaans  by  John  Hyrcanus. 

I  Yahwe  reigns,  the  peoples  tremble  ;  i 

He  is  throned  on  cherubim,  the  earth  totters  ; 
Yahwe  is  a  great  [king]  in  Zion,  2 

He  has  sovereign  power  over  all  the  peoples. 
Let  them  praise  thy  name  as  great  and  awful,  3 

Holy  is  Yahwh. 


104  '^^^    PSALMS. 

Jerahmeel  and  Zarephath  thou  dost  love,  4 

Thou  hast  confirmed  justice  [and]  judgment, 
Righteousness  in  Jacob  thou  hast  carried  out. 
10  Extol  Yahwe  our  God,  5 

And  do  homage  before  his  footstool. 
Holy  is  Ya/nve. 

j\Ien  of  Jerahmeel  [are]  among  his  priests,  6 

Men  of  Ishmael  among  those  that  call  on  his  name, 
That  call  vipon  Yahwe,  and  he  himself  answers  them  ; 
In  the  valley  of  Arnon  (?)  and  in  the  wilderness  of  Jerah- 
meel 7 
They  observe  his  monitions  and  the  law  that  he  gave  them. 
Holy  is  Yahwe. 

O  Yahwe,  our  God  !  thou  dost  answer  them,  8 

20  A  God  that  forgives  hast  thou  been  unto  them. 

And  [a  God]  that  had  compassion  from  regard  to  their 

prayer. 
Extol  Yahwe  our  God.  9 

And  do  homage  before  his  footstool  ; 
Holy  is  Yahwe. 

Critical  Notes.  2  ff,  M  J^I^J^-  tOlJ  is  not  known.  G  (rakevBr^Td), 
whence    Du.    IDb^l.     (01.  Jirjri;^Gr.    V1::J1.)— Insert  X^l^  (xlvii.  3).— 

T  T  -  T  'V  V 

For  Qm  read  DIT'  (cp.  Ivii.  6,  12),  with  Bi. 
t:  t 

6.     The  refrain  should  probably  be  TVilV  li^")lp  (Du.)  ;  cp.  the  closing 

words  in  M.     SIH  and  ^\^T^'^  are  easily  confounded. 

7  f .     M  tODLl^^  "^bu  T^T.     Duhm  omits  2nj^  '^BDt2  as  an  editorial 
T  :   •      'v  V  :  ••  T        T  :   • 

correction,  and  renders  '  Royal   power  thou  hast  set  up.'     Read  rather 

nSlikT  b^i^2^~l^     ■)  andl,  i;  and  V ,  ~)  and  ^2  confounded,  &c.     Cp. 
EtiL.  Bib.,  '  Shaphat.'— Read  :£)3l^Q1 . 

13  f.  ^"inST  rrit^Q-  The  improbability  of  this  abrupt  reference  to 
Moses  and  Aaron,  and  of  the  representation  of  Moses  as  a  priest,  need 
not  be  shown  at  length  (see  introd.).  Hli^rj  seems  to  be  a  corrupt 
fragment  of  D''b^<;^!:2*^''  written  too  soon  ;  \\ir\i^,  of  D^':'kS::m''  (note 
Pasek).— M  ':>l<1D'i^1.     Why  Samuel.?     Read  D'''?i>?a'i'''T  (two  beats). 

16.  M  Dn^by  "IHT  ]^y  l^l2V^.,  most  unsuitable,  however  we 
may  read  f.  "o!'  'Read  'perhaps  '?4Sbm^  ~I3-Tr^31  ]i-^^}  p'JV?.  The 
second  half  of  this  is  safer  than  the  former. 


PSALMS    XCIX.    AND    C.  IO5 

21.  M  DD'b'^b^'^!^  Qpj>  '^^  DpJ  cannot  be  right.  Herz 
proposes  "736  '2-  But  the  difficulty  remains  that  /.  20  says  just  the 
opposite.  Hi.,  Bii.  read  Un2,  but  this  would  not  mean  'that  passed 
over.'  Duhm  emends  Ullw^by^n'bV  DpJT,  'but  taking  vengeance  for 
insuhs  directed  to  them.'  But  comparing  Hos.  xi.  8,  where  for  ^^3inj 
Wellh.  rightly  reads  ^^m  (cp.  S),  we  should  rather  read  QniQ  [/h?]'1, 
and  continue  the  line  with  DJn^BJl"/^- 


PSALM   C. 

J.  Ri METERS.  A  liturgical  psalm,  conventional  in  expres.sion,  but  no  doul)t 
sincerely  felt.  The  persons  addressed  are  Israel  and  Israel's  new  adherents  from 
N.  Arabia. 

Marked.      Of  'Arab-etJian.  I 

I  Shout  unto  Yahwe,  all  ye  in  the  land, 

Serve  Yahwe  with  rejoicings,  2 

Come  in  before  him  with  cries  that  ring. 

For  Yahwe — he  is  our  God,  3 

He  has  made  us  and  led  us  on, 

His  people  and  the  flock  that  he  tends. 

Enter  his  gates  with  thanksgivings,  4 

His  courts  with  songs  of  praise, 
Give  thanks  to  him,  bless  his  name. 

10  [Praise  him,]  for  [he]  is  good, 

Yahwe's  lovingkindness  is  for  ever. 
His  faithfulness  for  all  ages. 

I.  Y^^}^"7D•     See  on  xcvi.   i. —       altered  repetition  of  xcv.  6/',  7a,  b  (see 
2.  Sei~i'e,  i.e.  with  sacrifices  (Ex.  iii.  12,       corrected  text). 
Isa.    xix.    21,    23).  —  4-6.     A    slightly 

Critical  Notes.  (Title.)  niin'?,  G  th  f^ofio>.('>yr](nv  ;  T  ]2~)p  b^ 
XJinil-  Most  assume  nnn'^  to  have  been  suggested  by  min  in 
7>.  4,  but  'r\  there  has  a  perfectly  general  reference.  But  is  the  text 
right  ?  7  after  "T1DIID  ought  to  introduce  the  name  of  the  guild  or 
company  in  whose  custody  this  and  other  psalms  were.  If  so,  niin 
should  be  a  corruption  of  ]n'n[''],  'Jeduthun,'  i.e.  perhaps  ]j1"•^J  2"1V- 

4.  Omit  1^1  (perhaps  from  '?hi;:3m\  a  gloss  ;  cp.  xcvi..  //.  3,  4),  and 
read  ^J''^T7^i  (G^'"-"^^T)_  'Acknowledge  that  Yahw^  is  God'  is  unsuitable; 
the  context  shows  that  those  addressed  (an  expanded  Israel)  know  Yahwe 
already. 


106  THE    PSALMS. 

5-     ^J^3^i    St'l    is    an    editorial    development    out    of    an    ill-written 
IJ^^nn.     It  is  useless  to  dispute  over  the  rival  claims  of  H^  (Kt.)  and 

1*7  (Kr.).  The  passage,  as  corrected,  enables  us  to  restore  the  true  text 
of  xcv.  ja. 

lo.  Prefix  perhaps  im7Vn  (Du.),  and  insert  ^<^^  after  2MD-  Thus 
the  stanza  is  completed. 

PSALM   CI. 

1  EN'TAMETERS.  The  VOW  of  a  prince.  Let  us  look  at  the  psalm  from  the 
new  point  of  view  suggested  by  our  revision  of  the  received  text.  It  is  parallel 
to  Pss.  xlv.  and  Ixxii.,  in  which  the  Messiah  is  depicted  in  colours  derived 
from  the  legendary  portrait  of  Solomon,  but  more  especially  to  the  latter,  in 
which,  as  we  have  seen,  it  is  the  combined  tenderness  and  severity  of  the 
Messianic  king  which  is  eulogized — his  tenderness  to  the  righteous  poor  of 
Israel,  and  his  severity  lo  the  N.  Arabians  who  have  oppressed  them.  The 
'orphan'  and  the  'widow'  (the  terms  are  of  course  collective)  form  a  numerous 
class  in  the  Jewish  community ;  to  care  for  them  was  one  of  the  first  duties  of 
a  ruler  (Ixxxii.  3,  Isa.  i.  17).  The  terms,  however,  are  also  used  symbolically 
(see  on  x.  14)  for  the  people  of  Israel,  and  it  is  possible  that  in  /.  2  the 
speaker  may  mean  that  he  (the  Messiah)  will  avenge  the  wrongs  of  his 
oppressed  people  ;  to  do  justice  among  the  Jerahmeelites  would  of  course 
involve  giving  close  attention  to  the  interests  of  Israel.  This  may  perhaps 
be  confirmed  by  the  closing  stanza  in  which,  as  a  means  of  removing  from 
the  holy  city  '  all  workers  of  wrong,'  the  speaker  promises  (as  it  seems)  to 
destroy  all  the  wicked  in  Jerahmeel.  The  rest  of  the  psalm,  however,  seems 
to  refer  to  the  character  of  those  who  are  to  be  admitted  to  the  king's  court. 
They  are  to  be  ideal  Lsraelites,  of  the  type  described  in  Ps.  xv.  and  xxiv.  3-6; 
in  particular  they  are  to  be  free  from  the  heathenish  practices  of  N.  Arabian 
divination. 

lias  the  present  text  arisen  at  all  through  manipulation?  According  to 
Budde  (Exp.  T.,  Jan.  1897,  pp.  202  ff.)  the  psalm  was  originally  a  monologue 
of  Vahwe  himself,  and  was  altered  by  an  editor  into  a  hymn  suitable  for  an 
earthly  prince,  as  a  standard  of  character.  It  is  also  possible  to  suppose  that 
it  was  originally  intended  for  the  perusal  and  edification  of  some  contemporary 
(post-exilic)  piince,  presumably  one  of  the  Maccabees — either  Jonathan  or 
Simon.  This  view  may  seem  to  be  favoured  by  the  coincidence  in  expression 
between  v.  8  and  I  Mace.  ix.  73  (cp.  <'.  23),  xiv.  14,  36  ;  for  a  further  con- 
jecture see  OF,  68,  80.  The  latter  view  is  more  plausil)le,  because  it  does 
not  involve  such  arbitrary  interference  with  the  text  as  Budde's  view,  to  me 
at  least,  appears  to  do.  But  the  two  parallel  psalms  xlv.  and  Ixxii.,  having 
already  turned  out  not  to  be  based  on  earlier  psalms  referring  to  a  Maccaba^an 
prince,  one  may  well  hesitate  to  adopt  such  a  view  here.  The  text  is  indeed 
by  no  means  free  from  corruption,  but  even  in  the  form  given  by  M  it  admits 
of  an  easy  and  unforced  interpretation  in  a  Messianic  sense. — Biithgen  rather 
strangely   understands   the   speaker   to    be   the   post-exilic    Jewish    community  ; 

he  takes  the  imperfects  to  be  descriptive  of  the  present  ;  ■'7^i  Sl^Jl  ^/1!^ 
is  also  more  easily  intelligible  as  the  longing  utterance  of  the  community 
(cp.  the  promise  in  Ex.  xx.  21).  The  theory,  however,  though  held  to  be 
possible  by  Olshausen,  is  unnatural ;  it  is  best  to  adhere  to  the  view  expressed 
above — i.e.  the  speaker  is  the  Messiah. 

0/  ''Arab-ethaii :    marked.  I 

I       Piety  and  justice  will  I  practise  |  among  the  Jerahmeelites; 
I  will  give  heed  to  the  cause  of  the  orphan,  |  the  desire 

of  the  widow.  2 


PSALM    CI. 


107 


I  will  go  about  with  an  honest  heart  |  within  my  house ; 
None   shall   present  himself  before  me  |  whose  speech 
is  of  ruin. 

The  doings  of  magicians  do  I  hate,  |  it  shall  not  cleave 

to  me  ; 
[The  diviners  of]  Ishmael  and  Ashhur,  |  the  soothsaj'ers 

of  Jerahmeel. 

He  that  slanders  his  neighbour  in  secret,  |  him  will  I 

destroy  ; 
Whoso  has  a  high  look  and  a  proud  heart,  |  him  will  I 

not  sustain. 

Mine  eyes  are  on  the  faithful   of  the  land  |  that   they 
may  dwell  with  me  ; 
ID     Whoso  walks  blamelessly —  |  he  shall  serve  me. 

None  that  acts  deceitfully  shall  dwell  |  within  my  house  ; 
No  speaker  of  his  shall  stand  |  before  mine  eyes. 

In  Jerahmeel  1  will  destroy  |  all  the  wicked  of  the  land, 
That  I  may  cut  off  from  the  city  of  Yahwe  |  all  workers 
of  wronor. 


I  f.  The  Messianic  king,  like 
Vahwe  himself  (Ixviii.  6),  is  a  father 
to  the  orphan.  IDH  and  tDDti'Q. 
however,  are  also  required  of  every 
true  Israelite  (Hos.  xii.  7,  Mic.  vi.  8), 
and  the  persons  whom  the  speaker 
refuses  to  admit  into  his  household 
are  precisely  those  who  have  no  "IDH 
or  IDSti'S-  These  moral  courses  the 
Messianic  king  says,  surely  not  that 
he  will  '  sing,'  but  that  he  will 
'practise'  (see  crit.  n.).  In  M  the 
vow  to  take  care  of  the  orphan  is 
followed  by  an  earnest  appeal  to 
Yahwe  to  '  come '  (for  the  final  act 
of  judgment?).  Those  who  regard 
the  psalm  as  Davidic,  actually  com- 
pare the  speech  of  David  in  2  S.  vi.  9. 

4-    '?;^^'?n  "im.    bv'h2  (see 

on  xviii.,    //.  9-12)    is    a   special    cha- 


racteristic of  the  oppressive  rulers  and 
judges  ;  cp.  Iviii.,  /.  3,  Ixxxii.,  A  14. — 
5  f.  The  abhorrence  of  the  early 
Judaism  for  soothsaying  is  well  known. 
Cp.  Deut.  xviii.  9-12,  14  ;  Lev. 
xix.  26I'. 

8.  A  high  look,  &c.  Cp.  xviii.  28, 
cxxxi.  I.  Prov.  xxi.  4. — Sustain,  i.e. 
as  a  member  of  my  household  ;  cp. 
2  S.  xix.  33. 

II.  JVithin  my  house.  So  the 
'  blameless  '  Job  provides  against  trans- 
gressions in  his  household  (Job  i.  5), 
and  so  a  very  late  psalmist  makes  the 
righteous  man  '  visit  his  house  con- 
tinually to  take  away  unrighteousness  ' 
{Ps.  Sol.  iii.  8;  cp.  f.  7).— 12.  No 
speaker  of  lies.  See  on  xv.,  /.  4. — 
13  f.    See  introd. 


Critical  Notes,  i.  ^~l''li'^^  can  only  be  defended  on  the  supposition 
that  the  divine  IDH  and  lDSI^/D  are  spoken  of.  But  then  we  should 
expect  f"»lDrr  and  "]"'tD3X';2  •  At  the  end  of  v.  i  we  find  mr2TJ< ,  which 
is  suspicious  because  it  injures  the  metre.  Presumably  it  has  sprung 
from  ^l:^ti'^<  (cp.  the  opposite  mistake  in  lix.  10),  which  was  written  in 


I08  THE    PSALMS. 

the  margin  as  a  correction  of  n~l^'ii'>^.  Otherwise  we  might  emend 
HT'I^h?  into  "inti^hi.  [Diihm  has  a  similar  idea;  he  corrects  PITti^N 
into  ^'TJZ'^{,  and  deletes  ^"^^2T^<  as  an  arbitrary  insertion.  The 
coincidence  is  valuable.] 

2  f.    For  Q\^n  "["nn  read  Qin^  "1212  ■     Note  Pasek  after  ^V:)::^^*. 
•  T     '  V  %• :  T      -  :  . 

The   inexplicaljle    interrogative    T)rj   which    follows    comes   from    DJl^, 

written  as  a  correction  of  D^DJl  •     "^bii  ^i^3D  must  come  from  /^2^<J^ 

nj*.37i>?  (cxix.  20). — Tl^^.     G  (R*)  has  rod  o'Ikov  a-ov.     But  see  7'.  7. 
T  T  :  - 

4-     ^^    n^l^H'iib  (Pasek  follows).     Read  ni^TI"  (v.  6)  ;    ^i  became 

t^.— M  ~)21.     Read  m^  (Gr.). 

5  f .  M  D''tOD~il'li^P,  a  combination  of  difficulties.  The  vss.  point 
n'^y>  which  is  the  most  natural  course.  D^tOD  (G  TrapajBda-fis)  is  usually 
identified  with  D'^ZDIi^,  Hos.  v.  2,  but  the  text  of  that  passage  has  been 
much  misunderstood.  Both  for  D^iOD  and  for  □"'^li^  (rather  D^tOD),  and 
for  DIJID  in  Ezek.  xxviii.  3  we  should  read  D'^DlDIII,  'magicians'  (12 
and  D  confounded).  The  'magicians  of  Misrim'  (Gen.  xli.  8)  were  cele- 
brated. Read  'IH  HTDVi^.  L.  6  should  run,  -n^tt'^^^  '/^<PDt^^  [^QDp] 
':'J<ani>  ••JJiy^.— anS  (as  n'?  in  Jer.  ix.  25)  .^t^NVJ,  i.e.  '!2TD>  or  'HT  ; 

wp);  and  niD^  =  i^nwi^  ■,  ijqd  =  '^pvD ;  );iii  iD^b  ^i  =  ':'NQn-i\ 

The  corrections  are  in  accordance  with  analogy,  and  add  colour  to  the 
psalm. 

7  f.  Kt.,  ^Jiyi'^D  (Poel,here  only).  Kr.,  ''2'^b^,  an  unparalleled  form. 
Should  we  not 'read  ''2''^b^  (Prov.  xxx.  lo)*?— M  b^')^^-  G  tovto)  ov 
<7vv^(Teiov  =  bD''tk  iib  ijlN."    Rather  '?^'pD^j}  ikb  ^Hk.^  Cp.  on  cxii.  5^. 

13.  M  D^npuS.  The  morning  is  no  doubt  the  time  for  justice  (Jer. 
xxi.  12),  but  why  '  every  morning  '  ?  Budde  conjectures  that  in  the  original 
form  of  the  poem  (see  introd.)  it  was  Yahwe  who  asserted  this  claim 
comparing  Job  xxxviii.  12-15.  Clearly  the  troublesome  '^t'  must  be  a 
scribe's  error.     Read  t'hJiDni^^,  (cp.  '^r.^lD  from  TT"!*).     Cp.  /.  i. 


PSALM   CII. 

J\  roMPOSiTE  psalm  (see  crit.  n.  on  7'v.  12,  24-26).  All  three  parts  are 
in  trimeters,  thout;h  now  and  then  tlie  metre  seems  to  be  imperfect.  The 
third  part  reminds  us  of  II.  Isaiah;  Ilitzig  compares  Isa.  xlviii.  13,  li.  16, 
Ixvi.  2,  22,  li.  6,  1.  9,  xlviii.  12,  xlvi.  4.  But  the  ideas  were  the  common 
property  of  the  later  writers,  and  an  early  editor  may  well  have  thought  that 
edificaticm  required  a  reference  to  them.  In  its  final  form  Ps.  cii.  was 
endowed  with  a  finely  expressed  and  unique  heading,  appropriating  the  work 
to  '  the  sufferer,  when  he  faints,'  &c.  It  is  natural  to  suppose  that  the 
individual  Israelite  is  meant,  but  with  the  1331^  "'JN  of  Lam.  iii.  i  before 
us,  we  cann(jt  help  doubting  this  (cp.  Smend,  p.  130),  and  the  reference  in 
cii.C  and  cii.'-'  to  the  nation  is,  apart  from  the  lieading,  undeniable.  That 
the   psalm   is   composite,    will   be    clear   from   an    inspection   of   the   contents ; 


PSALM     CII.  —  I, 


109 


vv.  2- 1 1,  together  with  vv.  24,  250;,  are  altogether  elegiac  (cp.  Pss.  xxii., 
Ixix.)  ;  ill  the  other  parts  of  the  psalm  the  writers  soar  above  the  miseries 
of  the  present.  As  to  the  date  of  cii.C-^,  it  is  natural  to  derive  a  suggestion 
from  Neh.  i.  3,  ii.  3,  13  ff.,  iii.  34  ff.  (see  OP,  70  f.)  ;  the  walls  of  Jerusalem 
may,  in  fact,  have  been  broken  down  at  more  than  one  crisis  in  the  '  post- 
exilic '  period.  Besides  the  passages  referred  to,  it  is  not  impossible  to  compare 
I  Mace.  i.  31,  ii.  6-14,  x.  10  (cp.  Beer,  Geineinde-psalnieii ,  p.  xxxix.).  This, 
however,  would  require  to  be  treated  in  connexion  with  a  fresh  historical 
treatment  of  that  period,  and  cannot  here  be  assumed.  Kirkpatrick's  view, 
that  the  psalm  as  a  literary  whole  belongs  to  the  close  of  the  Exile,  is  only 
supported  by  the  gloom  of  one  part  and  the  idealistic  aspirations  of  another. 
But  the  current  notions  respecting  the  'restoration'  of  Israel  under  Cyrus 
have  received  too  severe  a  shock  to  permit  us  to  hold  this  view.  It  is  the 
Messianic  age  to  which  tiie  psalmist  looks  forward. 

Prayer  for  the  si/ffe?-er^  when    he  faints^  a/ui  pours  out  his 

comphiint  before   Yahivc.  I 

CII. — I. 

I  O  Yahwe  !  hear  my  prayer,  2 

And  let  my  cry  penetrate  unto  thee. 
Hide  not  thy  face  [from  thy  servant],  3 

Guard  me  from  those  of  Ishmael  ; 
Bend  to  me  thine  ear. 
From  those  of  Jerahmeel  dehver  me. 

For  my  body  is  eaten  up  as  by  fire,  4 

My  frame  is  scorched  througli  as  b}'  a  glowing  heat, 
My  palate  is  parched  like  herbage,  ; 

10  My  heart  is  dried  up  like  [grass]  ; 

I  am  bowed  down  at  the  sound  of  Jerahmeel,  6 

Through  Ishmael  my  bones  are  crushed. 

I  am  like  a  pelican  (?)  of  the  wilderness,  7 

I  resemble  an  owl  of  the  ruins  ; 

I  am  disturbed  and  tremble  as  a  bird  8 

Because  of  the  revilings  of  Jerahmeelites. 

Mine  enemies^  insult  me  continually,  9 

TP  TT  ^  ^ 

Yea,  I  eat  ashes  as  if  they  were  bread,  10 

20  And  mingle  my  drink  with  tears. 

Because  of  thy  hot  wrath  and  indignation,  11 

For  thou  hast  taken  me  up  and  flung  me  away. 
My  towers  Jerahmeel  has  destroyed,  I2,  24  f. 

With  the  arrows  of  the  warriors  my  dwellings. 

'  Jerahmeelites,   Ishmaelites. 


110  THE    PSALMS. 


CII. — 2. 


I       ^Thou,  O  Yahvve  !  wilt  be  enthroned  for  ever,  13 

Thy  memorial  is  from  age  to  age. 

Now  wilt  thou  arise  and  have  compassion  on  Zion,  14 

For  it  is  the  time  to  have  pity  on  her,  for  the  set  time 

is  come. 
For  thy  servants  have  affection  for  her  stones,  15 

And  feel  tenderly  towards  her  dust. 

And  the  nations  will  fear  the  name  of  Yahwe,  16 

And  all  the  kings  of  the  earth  thy  glory, 

Because  Yahwe  has  built  up  Zion  +anew+,  17 

10     And  has  shown  himself  in  his  glory  [within  her], 

Has  turned  towards  the  prayer  of  the  prisoners,  1 8 

And  not  rejected  their  supplication. 

Recorded  shall  this  be  for  the  next  generation,  19 

A  new-born  people  shall  praise  Yahwe, 

Because  he  has  looked  forth  from  his  holy  height,  20 

Out  of  heaven-  he  has  beheld  the  earth. 

To  hear  the  groaning  of  the  prisoners,  21 

To  loose  those  that,  dwelt  in  gloom. 

The  children  of  thy  servants  shall  dwell  ^in  the  land+,  29 

20     Their  offspring  will  be  established  before  thee. 

That  men  may  rehearse  the  name  of  Yahwe  in  Zion,  22 

And  his  praise  in  Jerusalem, 

When  the  peoples  are  gathered  together,  23 

And  the  kingdoms  to  serve  Yahwe. 

CII. — 3  (an  insertioii). 

I        Of  old  thou  didst  lay  the  earth's  foundation,  26 

And  the  heavens  are  the  work  of  thy  hands. 
They  will  perish,  but  thou  wilt  continue  ;  27 

They  all  will  wear  out  like  a  garment  : 
As  a  robe  wilt  thou  change  them,  and  they  will  pass 

away, 
But  thou  art  +still+  He,  and  thy  days  have  no  end.  2,^ 

'  And.  -  Vahwe. 


PSALM    CII. — I,  2,  3. 


Ill 


(Tiile.)  rh^r\;  see  v.  za. 
*lDy^  O  ;  cp.  Ixi.  3  ;  2  eV  tw  o.Qvii.i1v 
avT6y.  Tt^t^r  "ISt:;"'  ;  cp.  xlii.  5, 
Ixii.  9,  Iv.  3,  Ixiv.  2  ;  also  I  S.  i.  15. 

1-6.  For  the  phrases  cp.  xviii.  7, 
Ixix.  18,  xxvii.  9,  xxxi.  3.  A/y  body, 
D''Q"1^,  as  Job  xl.  18,  Prov.  xvii.  22. 
The  vital  juices  of  the  body  represent 
tlie  moral  strength  of  the  personality. 
Whatever  depresses  this,  may  be  said 
to  dry  up  the  '  bones.'  On  the  otlier 
hand,  Vahwe's  felt  presence  '  makes 
fat  the  bones'  (Isa.  Iviii.  11).  For 
'bones'  our  idiom  requires  'body,' 
'frame';  see  on  vi.  3.  On  the  text, 
see  crit.  n. 

8.  As  by  fire.  Cp.  Jer.  xx.  9, 
'  There  is  in  my  heart  as  it  were  a 
burning  fire  shut  up  in  my  bones.' 
To  hold  back  a  message  of  Vahwe  to 
others  has  the  same  effect  as  being 
deprived  of  his  inward  messages  of 
peace  to  oneself.  In  both  cases  de- 
struction is  the  consequence  of  a  pro- 
longation of  this  terrible  experience. — 
IplDD,  'like  a  hearth'  (Del.,  Siegfr. 
St.),  'like  a  burning  mass'  {BDB). 
Kather  'like  a  burning  glow,'  as  Isa. 

xxxiii.  14,  ub'W  npiD.    nni  as 

Ixix.  4. 

9  f.  Cp.  xxii.  16. — ir.  Cjj.  xliv. 
16  f.,  Iv.  4,  xxxviii.  9  ODNDID), 
li.  10  (Jn^3*7).  We  must  not,  simply 
to  justify  an  altogether  improbable 
text,  make  "'^ti'^  here,  and  in  cix.  24 
(M)  mean  '  my  skin.' 

13.  I  retain  the  conventional  render- 
ing ' pelican.'  But  see  E.  Bib.,''  Pelican.' 

17.  Cp.  xlii.  II. — 19  f.  It  is  the 
mourner's  paradox — ashes  his  bread, 
tears  his  drink  (cp.  xlii.  4,  Ixxx.  6). 
Cp.  £.  Bib.,  'Mourning  Customs.' — 
22.  Cp.  Job  xxvii.  21,  XXX.  22. 

23  f.  The  crushing  calamities 
brought  upon  Israel  by  the  agency  of 
the  N.  Arabian  foes  were  the  con- 
sequence of  \'ahwe's  rejection  of  his 
people.  Totvers,  as  xlviii.  4,  14,  Am. 
vi.  8,  &c.  T13J  *jjn,  as  cxx.  4,  cp. 
cxxvii.  4.  The  text  of  lines  23,  24 
appears  to  have  double  rejiresenta- 
tion — in  v.  12,  and  in  7'v.  24  f.  Between 
these  comes  an  inserted  passage (cii.<'-'), 
in  which,  for  sufficient  reasons,  v.  29 
must  be  included. 


CII. '2'  1-6.  The  fundamental  idea 
in  the  early  Judaism — Vahwe's  eternity 
(cp.  cii.(-").  For  a  time  there  may 
not  be  one  stone  of  Zion  upon  another, 
Ijut  Yahwe's  jiurposes  are  eternal.  The 
'  set    time '    ('7j)iQ,    as    Hab.   ii.    3) 

must  have  come.  Can  God  have  less 
pity  on  His  people  than  Israel  has 
for  the  stones  of  Zion  ?  Lines  I  and 
2  accord  with  Lam.  v.  19,  where, 
however,  "]ND2  is  read  instead  of 
"yiDTI  ;  but  cp.  Ex.  iii.  15.  Lines 
5  and  6  remind  us  of  Neh.  iii.  34,  &c. 
(but  see  introd.). — 7.  The  restoration 
of  Israel,  the  prelude  to  a  general 
adoption  of  the  true  religion.  Here, 
at  least,  a  psalmist  makes  no  special 
reference  to  the  N.  Arabian  peoples. 
Cp.  Isa.  lix.  19,  Ix.  3.  The  perfects 
in  OT'.  17,  18,  20  are  of  course  future 
or  relative  perfects. 

II,  17.  Prisoners.  Cp.  Ixxix.  11, 
Ixviii.  7,  &c. 

13  f-    pin^^  ll'?  ;  cp.  xlviii.  14, 

Ixxviii.  6.— h}-|3J  W^l-     Cp.  'J  in  civ. 

30,   Ezek.  xxviii.  13. 

15  f.  Cp.  Isa.  Ixiii.  15;  also 
Ps.  xiv.  2,  xxxiii.  13. — 23  f.  The 
Messianic  age  is  referred  to  (see  introd., 
and    cp.    Isa.  xlv.  20,  Ix.  3). 

CII.'^>  Notice  the  parallels  in 
II.  Isaiah  (xlviii.  13,  cp.  xliv.  24  ; 
li.  6,  cp.  1.  9).  Usually  the  world  is 
represented  as  enduring  for  ever  (Gen. 
viii.  21  f.,  ix.  9  ff.,  Ps.  cxlviii.  6). 
It  is  possible  to  find  here  a  reflexion 
of  the  doctrine  of  the  new  heaven  and 
earth.  The  indirect  induence  of  Zo- 
roastrianism,  to  which  this  doctrine  is 
essential  (cp.  0I\  404  iL,  Eiu.  Bib., 
col.  1065),  was  probably  felt  more 
and  more  in  the  post-exilic  period,  so 
that  this  view  is  quite  possible,  and 
does  not  necessitate  a  Maccabrean 
date  (but  cp.  Charles,  Eschatology, 
p.  123,  note).  ^'et  it  is  also  possible 
that  the  language  is  merely  that  of  one 
who  is  being  pushed  by  his  strong 
belief  in  the  divine  eternity  to  the 
confines  of  a  new  region  of  thought. 
The  idea  that  the  appearance  of  Vahwe 
Would  cause  the  hills  to  melt  is  found 
in  Mic.  i.  4,  Nab.  i.  5,  Ps.  xcvii.  5, 
civ.  32.  Of  these  passages  Mic.  i.  4 
at  any  rate  seems  to  be  ancient, 
liabylonian  influence  is  suspected  here 
by  Zimmern  (AV^Z'-' ,  p.  560). 


112  THE    PSALMS. 

Crilical  Notes.  (cii." .)  3.  Insert  *]12^?2.— 4-  'i^D.  Read 
probably  ''Jli^Ii'-  The  text  is  in  disorder,  and  we  must  Ijcgin  to  remedy 
this  by  seeking  for  a  verb. — v  "liJ  DV^-  We  need  mention  of  those 
who  cause  the  speaker's  anxiety.  Following  the  parallel  of  1  S.  i.  26  let 
us  take  ^7  Hi  as  a  corruption  of  7^i"^ti^^>  and  this  as  a  scribe's  error  for 
/KyitDIi'^ ;  and  as  elsewhere  let  us  regard  QT  in  QV  as  =  Q^,  the  plural 
termination.  Read  D''7J^>'I2Ii'"'Q  (so  also  by  preference  in  lix.  17,  Ixix. 
18).— ^<-|p^*  DVa-  Read  D''?Nan-|^D  (cp.  on  Ivi.  9).— Omit  in^,  a 
dittographed  'Qm*'  (and  so  best  in  Ixix.  18).— "•J^J/  read  "':)i>i:'n  (as 
Ixix.  18). 

7.     Read  ^^"lil  li'KD  .■)'73J^  "'3  •      Cp.  WV  for  '^'^,  xxxvii.  20.     The 
T  t:         ..  t         :  ••.       •  ' 

very  defective  parallelism  is  now  cured.  G  at  any  rate  supports  3  for  ^ 
(wcrei  /cdTTJ'os'). 

9  f.     For  TVh'^T\  (=  HZin  ?)  read  n^lll,  and  insert  ^2T\-  which,  as 

T  T   ••.  T     :  T  •     . 

well  as  'in,  underlies  HDin.  Parallelism  requires  the  insertion  of 
T^HD  ;  strictly,  two  letters  of  this  (^  and  ^)  exist  already  in  the 
superfluous  O  of  M  (and  G). 

11.  "'2;  see  preceding  note. — ''J^nDli7-  Read  *r^yr\V  (xxxv.  14, 
xxxviii.  7).  ^•Crh  ^Zi^P^  followed  (7'.  ba)  by  ^DmSt  bip?^.  The 
ordinary  text  is  surely  most  unsatisfactory.  The  two  pairs  of  words  are 
to  be  regarded  as  variants.  t'pQ  is  better  than  7DNQ,  but  ^QH'?  is 
preferable  to  \~injj^  because  nearer  to  the  original  reading,  which  was 
doubtless  '?^}Q^'^^  (cp.  on  2  S.  xxi.  19).  ^n^TJ^{  represents  ]J<i^nv 
The  scribe  mistook  Q  for  J~l,  and  transposed  the  letters. 

12.  ^n'iy37    'Q'.*!'    npnT-     We   should  have  expected  'my  tongue 

•  T  :  •         •   :''         't:    T 

cleaves  to  my  gums'  (cp.  .xxii.  16).  What  we  find  is  usually  explained  as 
a  reminiscence  of  Job  xix.  20,  where,  however,  the  text  is  obviously  in 
some  disorder  (see  Budde  and  Duhm).  Read  heie  '^N^'Qti?'':^  '''CSIV  ^3"fJV 
li'lb,  like  "'ti'l':'  in  Ezek.  xxiii.  6,  comes  from  '^NrQ'ii'"'  ;  n  may 
represent  X^. 

15  f  We  expect  some  progress  beyond  the  quiet  melancholy 
suggested  in  //.  13  f. ;  something  like  Iv.  3-9  would  be  perfectly  in 
place.  Linguistically  and  exegetically  JJ1"7^  "1113  is  suspicious.  Why 
'  solitary  on  the  roof  ?  A  timid  bird  shrinks  from  the  haunts  of  men. 
And  does  such  a  word  as  TTI^  exist  elsewhere  in  the  O.T.  ?  We 
cannot  appeal  with  confidence  to  Isa.  xiv.  31,  Hos.  viii.  9,  for  in  both 
passages  corruption  is  suspected.  Let  us  take  an  idea  from  Hos.  viii.  9, 
where  (see  note)  l'^  1112  probably  represents  '?NQniV  Read 
D''?^<Q^T  ^3ir':'y  I  li2:i3  lirrS'l  '-nn~i.  The  changes  involved 
are  quite  regular.  1113  and  J1J|~'?J,^  it  is  here  assumed,  have  changed 
places,   i.e.  when  'HI*  'IJl"*^!,'    became  corrupt  transposition  became  an 


PSALM    CII.  113 

exegetical  necessity.  ~T"TJ  is  supported  by  T  (alt.),  Pesh.,  and  Heb. 
MSS.  ;  cp.  Isa.  xvi.  2,  Prov.  xxvii.  8.— ?)3;2li^2  ""^  '''?':'inQ.  That  the 
first  word  is  wrong,  must  be  admitted.  A  parallel  for  the  Pual  part,  with 
suffix  does  not  appear  to  have  been  found  (cp.  Kautzsch-Ges.,  §  116  i  ; 
Kon.,  Synt.,  §23).  G  S  imply  'h^'Ht^,  'my  praisers.'  Duhm,  ^^inp 
(Poel),  but  would  this  mean  'those  who  mock  at  me'?  cp.  Isa.  xliv.  25. 
If  the  text  is  right,  we  should  prefer  ^';>'^n?!3, 'those  that  profaned  me' 
(cp.  Ezek.  xxviii.  9).  But  is  it  right  ?  'Not  only  'IHD  but  IJ/ltt^:  ^2, 
excites  surprise.  This  phrase  is  explained  by  the  critics,  '  use  my  name 
in  their  oaths'  (cp.  Isa.  Ixv.  15,  Jer.  xxix.  22).  But  could  the  name  of 
Israel  be  used  in  imprecations  of  ruin  except  when  a  people  was 
referred  to,  and  this  can  hardly  have  been  a  frequent  occurrence  ?  The 
analogy  of '^^j'^'pHQ  in  Gen.  v.  12  &c.  suggests  that  'hhT}'0  (cp-  G)  comes 
from  D''':?hiDm%  and  that  of  ':5i^l3iy  in  i  Chr.  xxiii.  16  for  '?N"i;2t:'  = 
':'hf^*D'^\  and  D'lOii,  i  S.  xiii.  18,  also  for  '?J<yQi:^\  favour  the  view  that 
we  should  read  D"'':'^^^'^!^'''  D'''?SQrn\  a  gloss  on  ''2"'1N.  In  other 
words,  the  gloss  has  supplanted  a  line  of  the  true  text. 

23  f.  According  to  Uuhm,  vt.  24  and  25a  are  a  quotation  from 
another  poem  in  a  different  metre.  But  how  can  we  speak  confidently  of 
metre  till  the  text  has  been  thoroughly  examined  ?  All  that  we  can  say 
at  once  is,  that  either  ?'.  12  is  superfluous  or  vi>.  24,  25a.  One  could 
more  easily  spare  the  former  passage,  which  is  not  only  commonplace 
but  deficient  in  parallelism.  But  the  Hebrew  of  vi'.  24,  25cj  is  not  at  all 
smooth,  whereas  the  psalm  in  general  is  smooth.  Nor  have  we  a  clear 
right  to  separate  ?'.  25a  from  v.  25/; ;  indeed,  Duhm  himself  in  his 
German  Psalnicn  makes  the  '  quotation '  include  v.  2^b.  Nothing  but 
familiarity  with  types  of  textual  corruption  can  help  us.  It  is  probable 
(see  exeg.  n.)  that  v.  12  and  v.  24  f.  have  sprung  from  the  same  original. 
One  can  see  at  once  that  ''2/yn~bii  '''^J^  HOS  (v.  25)  represents 
7N^rn^  (twice),  and  it  then  becomes  very  probable  that  ^^^  both  in 
7'.  24  f.  and  in  v.  12  represents  '^^QPIIV  Little  less  probable  is  it  that 
■^'/TlTii'  in  7'.  2^^  represents  Tn^^Ii^Q,  and  that  ^IIOJ  in  t.  12  either 
represents  this  word  or  (preferably),  in  conjunction  with  "'JhiT  (=DN1), 
'\"nj!21X.  In  truth,  we  require  both  these  words  for  parallelism,  and  it 
is  not  impossible  that  3ti'3.0  in  7'.  12  may  come  from  ["l^jll] JJti'D ■  In 
7'7'.  24  f.  TO  and  ^^HQ  clearly  have  the  same  original — probably 
^^nH,  which  may  also  underlie  7)^3  in  7'.  12.  If  so,  Dmi  "1112  (which 
otherwise — see  on  Ixxii.  5,  end— might  represent  "imH)  may  stand  for 
Dm3:i-  It  only  remains  to  explain  ti^2^hi  in  7'.  12  and  ^^D  lUIl  .12]; 
in  7'.  24.  ki'H'hJ  (like  ^.ti''  often)  seems  to  represent  7^}J^3ti'^,  a  variant 
to  ''7^<Q^-|^  and  'J  'in  712];  may  come  from  1/13  ':'NDni^  MIJQIN ; 
■^ll,  generally  with  some  added  letter  or  letters,  several  times  represents 
7N^m'  (^•A''-  7")"Tn,  Zech.  ix.  i).  Read  therefore  as  an  approximation 
II.  I 


114  THE    PSALMS. 

to  the  true  text,  which  at  any  rate  is  partly  right,  and  adequately  conveys 
the  original  writer's  meaning-, 

Of  course,  the  present  form  of  7'.  25/;   was  produced  under  the  influence 
of  the  inserted  passage,  7'Z'.  26 — 28. 

(CII.'"'")   I.     Omit  1  before  rrnS  (redactional).     So  Duhm.     3.  Read 

r\I^V,   with    Gratz. — 10.    With    Duhm,    read    ^^<1J"1    (G)   and   append 

nznpa   (metre),  which  easily  fell  out  after   "lllZD^-— n-  M  "^V"^^!^  > 

G  Tcov  Tanfivu>v  (D"'^3^?)  ;  'A  2  rov  (KKfKevoififvov.     Gratz  follows  G,  but  a 

better   correction    is  b^'DhJ   (cp.  7'.   21a). — M  □D'^Sn.     A    repetition. 

Read   DJl^rm;   G  ti]v  derjaiv  avrav  (cp.  G,  vi.  lo). 
TT  •    : 

16.     Omit    the    superfluous    Yahwe  ;    lines    16    and    17     now   agree 

metrically.— 17.    Read  D''1"'DM   (parallelism);  cp.  G.— 18.  njll':2j7l  ""^jI- 

Read  ^i^Dy^  '•JDt^  (Ixxix.'i'i)' 

(CII.(3')  6.     M  Tj-'Jlij-^.     The  verb  being  masc,  read  Tj''::^'' (Duhm). 


PSALM  cm. 

1  RIMETERS.  Thanksgiving  to  Yahwe,  whose  characteristic  attributes  of 
mercy  and  longsuffering  the  reversal  of  Israel's  unhappy  lot  in  the  Messianic 
age  (here  represented  as  past)  splendidly  exemplifies.  The  original  psalm 
appears  to  have  been  manipulated  with  a  view  to  adapt  it  to  the  wants  of  a 
later  generation,  which  had  nothing  to  fear  from  N.  Arabians.  At  the  same 
time  liturgical  doxologies  were  added,  perhaps  in  lieu  of  some  omitted  lines. 
Psalms  ciii.  and  civ.  appear  to  have  been  used  liturgically  in  combination. 
Hence  the  closing  line.  The  speaker,  as  Smend  (p.  130)  rightly  sees,  is  the 
community.      So  also  Coblenz  (pp.  68  f.). 

0/  ^Arab-ethan.  I 

I  O  my  soul !  bless  Yahwb, 

And  all  that  is  within  me  (bless)  his  holy  name. 

O  my  soul  !  bless  Yahwe,  2 

And  forget  not  all  his  benefits  ; 

Who  has  pardoned  all  thine  iniquities,  3 

And  healed  all  thy  sicknesses  ; 

Who  has  delivered  thy  life  from  the  pit,  4 

And  crowned  thee  with  kindness  and  compassion  : 

Who   has  brought  thee  home  from  the  house  of 

Arabia,  5 

10         And  gathered  thy  survivors  from  Cushan. 


PSALM  cm.  115 

Righteous  acts  doth  Yahwe  perform,  6 

And  judgments  for  all  that  are  oppressed. 
He  made  known  his  ways  vnito  Moses,  7 

His  exploits  unto  the  children  of  Israel. 
Yahwe  is  full  of  compassion  and  pity,  8 

Long-suffering,  and  plenteous  in  lovingkindness  : 
He  will  not  contend  perpetually,  9 

Nor  keep  his  anger  for  ever. 

He  has  not  dealt  with  us  after  our  sins,  10 

20         Nor  requited  us  according  to  our  iniciuities. 

For  as  the  heaven  is  high  above  the  earth,  1 1 

So  high  is  his  kindness  over  them  that  fear  him  ; 

As  far  as  the  east  is  from  the  west  12 

He  has  removed  our  transgressions  from  us. 

As  a  father  has  compassion  upon  his  sons,  13 

Yahwe  has  compassion  upon  those  that  fear  him. 

For  he — he  knows  of  what  we  are  made,  14 

And  bethinks  him  that  we  are  but  dust. 

Mortal  man,^  his  days  are  as  grass,  15 

30         As  a  flower  of  the  field,  so  he  blossoms  ; 

For  a  wind  passes  over  it,  and  it  is  gone,  16 

And  its  place  knows  it  no  more. 

But  the  lovingkindness  of  Yahwe  is  towards  them 

that  fear  him,  17 

And  his  righteousness  unto  children's  children. 
Unto  such  as  keep  his  ordinance,  18 

And  remember  his  behests.- 

Yahwe  has  established  his  throne  in  heaven,  19 

His  dominion  rules  over  all. 

Glorify  Yahwe,  ye  Jerahmeelites,  20 

40         Ye  Ishmaelites,  and  all  Arabians  ! 

Liturgical  addition  to  the  adapted  psalm  [II.  1-3  8). 

I  Bless  Yahwe,  ye  his  angels,  20 

Ye  heroes  in  strength,  that  perform  his  word. 
To  hearken  to  the  voice  of  his  word . 
Bless  Yahwe,  all  his  host,  .     21 

'  Jerahmeel.  2  -f^  ^^  them. 


ii6 


THE    PSALMS. 


Ye  his  ministers,  that  perform  his  purpose. 
Bless  Yahwb,  all  his  works, 
In  all  places  of  his  dominion, 
O  my  soul  !  bless  Yahwe. 


22 


I.     O  my    soul,  bless  Tah\<re. 

Israel  is  the  true  '  son  of  man,'  '  the 
world's  high  priest,'  who  '  doth  pre- 
sent— The  sacrifice  for  all'  (G.  Her- 
bert). Cp.  a  striking  passage  of  Philo 
{OP,  366). —  5  ft".  The  national  sins 
have  been  pardoned ;  as  a  pledge 
of  this,  prosperity  in  its  highest  form 
has  been  granted.  Cp.  Isa.  xl.  i.- — • 
7.  /iri'ii^ ;   see  on  xvi.  10. — 9  f.  House 

of  Arabia,  rather  than  'house  of  ser- 
vants ;'  parallel  here  to  '  Cushan,'  and 
in  Ex.  xiii.  3,  &c.,  to  Misrim.  See 
crit.  n.,  and  cp.  Isa.  xi.  11  (note  in 
Crit.  Bill.),  also  Ps.  cvi.  47,  cvii.  3. 
The  received  text  labours  under  in- 
superable difficulties,  including  that  of 
explaining  how  the  eagle  '  renews  its 
youth '  differently  from  other  birds. — 
15  ft".    Cp.  on  Ixxxvi.  5,  15. — 17  f.  Cp. 

Isa.    Ivii.    II,     Jer.    iii.    5     ("IIJO").— 

21.  Cp.  xxxvi.  6. — 28.  Cp.  Ixxviii.  39, 
Ixxxix.  48. — 29  ft".  Cp.  xcii.  7,  Isa.  xl. 
6-8.  The  writer  thinks  specially  of 
the  powers  hostile  to  Israel. — 35  f.  For 
this  limitation  of  the  divine  hesed, 
cp.  Ex.  XX.  6,  xxxiv.  7,  Dt.  vii.  9. — 
39  f.  The  surviving  Jerahmeelites  are 
incorporated  in  the  community  of  wor- 
shippers of  Yahwe.  Cp.  especially 
xxix.  I,  &c.  (crit.  note),  Isa.  xix.  24  f., 


Ixvi.  21  {Crit.  Bib.),  and  see  following 
note. 

Addition.    I.    Ye  his  angrels.  Cp. 

cxlviii.  2.  The  reference  to  the  angels 
comes  in  well  after  v.  19a.  At  the 
same  time  the  original  reference  (?)  to 
the  Jerahmeelites  is  also  a  natural 
sequel  to  the  declaration  that  Yahwe 
from  his  heavenly  throne  rules  even 
over  those  who  once  denied  his  power 
(cp.  xi.  5  ff.,  xiv.  3).  —  2.  Heroes 
(Dm^II),  as  in  Joel.  iv.  (iii.)  il  ; 
also  of  Yaliwe,  xxiv.  8,  Ixxviii.  65. — 
3.  To  hearken,  &c.  Awkwardly  con- 
nected (see  crit.  note  on  /.  40,  above). 
— 4.  Ail  his  host.  Can  the  'host'  be 
distinguished  from  the  angels?  01. 
and  Gr.  think  of  the  stars  (regarded 
as  animated,  cp.  Job  xxxviii.  7)  ;  Bii. 
agrees,  but  would  add  forces  of  nature 
like  winds  and  fire,  civ.  4.  Hitz.  and 
Del.  prefer  the  lower  angels,  the 
'heroes'  of  /.  2  being,  as  they  think, 
the  archangels.  The  difficulty  seems 
to  have  arisen  through  the  transforma- 
tion of  'Jerahmeelites'  into  angels. 
At  any  rate,  there  is  no  reason  to 
think  that  the  later  editor  distinguished 
between  'angels'  and  'host.'  By  both 
phrases  he  meant  the  divine  powers 
of  the  beyond,  the  spiritual  world, 
called  by  him  'heaven'  (cp.  OP,  314). 


Critical  Notes.  9,  10.  (i)  Our  first  difficulty  is  with  TjnX'.  We 
must  remember  that  the  soul  is  addressed.  "jHi^ ,  therefore,  cannot  be  a 
paraphrastic  expression  for  '  thy  soul,'  even  if,  with  G,  we  explain  '  soul  ' 
here  as  =  'appetite'  {rrjv  imdv^iav  a-ov).  Nor  can  'thy  body'  (S)  be  meant, 
for  if  anything  is  to  be  called  'ornament,'  it  is  not  the  body  but  the  soul. 
The  latest  suggestion  is  that  of  Nestle  {ZATIV,  1899,  p.  182),  who 
supposes  the  reading  TJTiy  to  underlie,  2  (rr/i-  eTvifiovlju  aov.  Field)  and 
perhaps  T  ;  cp.  civ.  33,  cxlvi.  2  ?  This  does  not  help.  Plainly  the  final 
letter  is  one  of  those  which  are  or  may  be  corrupt  ;  otherwise  why  is  not 
the  form  of  the  sutifix  the  same  as  elsewhere,  viz.  >3 —  or  "'3"'—  ?     (2)  The 

next  difticulty  is  in  2.^t3Il.  \Vith  p^^l'l^'n  we  expect  2*113,  without  a 
preposition.  The  third  {c)  is  the  change  of  construction  in  iznTlDn  , 
and  the  fourth  {d)  the  exegetical  one  (/.  10)  mentioned  above.  It  would 
seem  that  the  corruption  of  the  text  must  be  deeply  seated  ;  every  word, 


PSALMS     cm.    AND    CIV.  II7 

therefore,  must  be  scrutinized,  and  we  must  take  the  passage  with  Isa. 
xl.  31,  where  the  text  gives  a  similar  improbability  respecting  the  eagle. 
In  both  passages  what  we  expect  is  a  reference  to  the  crowning  mercy  of 
the  deliverance  of  the  Jews  from  a  N.  Arabian  captivity.  Suppose  this 
possibility  to  be  a  fact  ;  what  must  be  the  underlying  text,  having  regard, 
of  course,  to  parallel  cases  in  each  case  elsewhere  ?  The  only  real 
though  slight  difficulty  is  with  "^W^D ,  W^IV^D  •  lli'JD  might  come 
from  iyj"^;!3  (cp.  Isa.  xi.  11),  but  this  key  will  not  unlock  DHti'JD  .  To 
explain  both  words,  we  must  trace  Hi^D,  D"'~ni^3  to  '1'tV2  ,  Wl'tO, 
which,  as  in  so  many  other  cases,  probably  came  from  an  original  li^lD  , 
□"•ti^O  •  How  to  correct  the  rest  of  both  passages  is  clear  OlID  some- 
times comes  from  an  original  71^3)-     Read  in  Isa.,  D^tt'^i^    3")^^   T?V'^ 

(a  gloss),  and  in  Ps.  "^^"^i^p^  '^13 :p  "^Pi?  I  ^'^IV  ^"^^  ^"f  ?  • 

22.  For  133  read  probably  H^J  (Hupf.,  Gr.,  Du.).— 33.  dS^^D  and 
□'?U'~'^>*  hoth  represent  (it  is  a  common  type  of  corruption)  7N!^m* , 
which  is  probably  a  gloss  on  li^lJS  (^.  29),  which  (cp.  xxxvii.  35,  Isa.  xl. 
6  {.)  refers  specially  to  the  wicked. 

36.     Omit  UDWyb  (Bickell,  Duhm).     Metre. 

39.  Probably  the  original  psalm  had  D"''7N::3m''  {'\i^b:2  and  'n"1^ 
confounded,  as  in  2  S.  xi.  i).  This  enables  us  to  account  for  IJ^^IJ  (so 
read)  in  t'.  20,  and  for  the  troublesome  last  clause  of  7'.  21. — 40.  ^'i^li'T' 
i"13T    '^P^l-     This   awkward    clause    may   represent    "731    DvNl?pTi^^ 

D'3-u:. 

Addition,  i,  2.  Altered  from  //.  39  f  —  4.  Read  1h}3^  (Du.)  ;  cp. 
cxlviii.  3,  Kt. 


PSALM    CIV. 

1  KiMEiERS.  To  some  extent  a  poetic  version  of  the  cosmogony  in  Gen.  i. 
Cp.  E.  Bib.,  'Creation,'  §  29.  The  historical  and  geographical  colouring  has 
been  much  toned  down  hy  the  later  editor.  The  scribes,  however,  were  doubt- 
less his  predecessors  ;  i.e.  he  had  before  him  a  corrupt  text. 

I  O  my  soul  I  bless  Yahwe.  I 

O  Yahwe  my  God  !  thou  art  very  great. 
Thou  art  robed  in  splendour  and  state, 
Wrapping  thee  in  light  as  in  a  mantle.  2 

He  stretches  out  the  heavens  like  a  tent-curtain  ; 
He  makes  spacious  chambers  in  the  waters  ;  3 

He  uses  clouds  for  his  chariot, 
He  travels  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind  ; 
He  makes  his  messengers  of  winds,  4 

10  His  ministers  of  fire  and  flame. 


Il8  THE    PSALMS. 

Thou  didst  found  the  earth  upon  its  base, 
That  it  might  remain  unshaken  for  evermore. 
Ocean  covered  it  as  with  a  robe, 
On  +the  tops  of+  mountains  stood  the  waters  ; 
Because  of  thy  menace  they  fled, 
At  the  sound  of  thy  thunder  they  were  scared  ; 
From  the  mountains  they  went  down  to  the  plains, 
To  the  place  which  thou  hadst  appointed  for  them  ; 
Thou  hast  set  a  bound  which  they  may  not  pass  over, 
20     That  they  cover  not  the  earth  again. 

He  sends  forth  springs  into  the  valleys, 
Between  the  mountains  flow  +the  streams+  ; 
They  give  drink  to  every  beast  that  roams, 
To  find  them  the  wild  asses  long. 


lO 


II 


Upon  them  the  birds  of  heaven  dwell,  12 

From  among  the  branches  they  sing. 

To  the  mountains  he  gives  drink  from  his  chambers,  13 

30     The  earth  has  its  fill  from  thy  showers. 

He  causes  grass  to  grow  for  the  cattle,  14 

And  herbs  for  the  food  of  men, 
iBringing  forth  bread-corn  from  the  earth, 
And  causing  the  wine-plant  to  grow  in  Ishmael.^  15^0. 

The  trees  of  Yahwe  have  their  fill,  16 

The  cedars  of  Lebanon  which  he  planted  ; 
There  the  vultures  build  their  nests,  17 

On  the  top  of  the  asshur-trees  is  their  house. 
The  high  mountains  are  for  the  wild  goats,  18 

40     The  crags  a  refuge  for  the  marmots. 

Thou  didst  make  the  moon  for  +measurement  of+  times,      19 

To  the  sun  thou  didst  appoint  his  going  down  ; 

Thou  makest  darkness,  then  it  is  night,  20 

Wherein  all  the  beasts  of  the  forest  are  astir  ; 

The  young  lions  roar  after  their  prey,  21 

And  seek  their  food  from  God  ; 

'  Bringing  forth  vines  in  Ishmael, 
I'loducing  bread -corn  in  Ishmael  (z'.  i$afi,  l>). 


PSALM    CIV. 


iig 


The  sun  rises,  they  withdraw  themselves,  22 

And  lay  them  down  in  their  dens. 

Man  goes  forth  to  his  work,  23 

50     And  to  his  labour  until  the  evening. 

How  manifold  are  thy  works,  O  Yahwe  !  24 

In  wisdom  hast  thou  made  them  all. 
The  earth  is  full  of  thy  mercy  ; 

Thou  hast  made  the  sea  [and  its  fulness,]  25 

Great  and  widely  stretching, 
Wherein  are  things  that  move  past  numbering, 
Living  creatures  both  small  and  great  ; 

There  the  dragons  move  along,  26 

60     Leviathan  whom  thou  hast  fashioned.' 

They  all  wait  longingl}^  for  thee,  27 

That  thou  mayest  give  them  their  food  in  due  season. 
Thou  givest  it  them,  they  gather  it  ;  28 

Thou  openest  thy  hand,  they  are  richly  satisfied. 
Thou  hidest  thy  face,  [they  consume  away,]  29 

[Thou  veilest  thyself,]  they  are  terror-stricken. 
Thou  takest  away  their  breath,  they  die, 
And  turn  again  to  dust. 

Thou  sendest  forth  thy  breath,  they  are  created  +afresh+,     30 
70     And  thou  renewest  the  face  of  the  ground. 

Let  the  glory  of  Yahwe  endure  for  ever  !  31 

Let  Yahwe  rejoice  in  his  works  ! 

Who  looks  on  the  earth,  and  it  trembles,  32 

Touches  the  mountains,  and  they  smoke. 
I  will  sing  unto  Yahwe,  while  life  shall  last  ;  33 

I  will  chant  to  my  God,  while  I  remain. 

Sweet  be  my  song  unto  him  ;  34 

As  for  me,  I  will  rejoice  in  Yahwe. 

Let  sinners  cease  to  cumber  the  earth  ;  35 

80     Let  no  wicked  be  therein  any  more  ! 

Addition. 
O  my  soul  bless  Yahwe. 

'  To  sport  witli. 


120 


THE    PSALMS. 


3.  -)im  lin.  Cp.  Job  xi.  10.— 

TT  :  "^ 

4.  /«  /^^'/i/.  A  uni(]ue  statement ; 
but  cp.  Isa.  X.  17  ('the  liyht  of  Israel,' 
ll'his  Holy  One'),  Dan.  vii.  9.  Cp. 
in  the  Avesta  the  fundamental  idea  of 
Ahuramazda  who  dwells  in  the  'endless 
lights,'  i.e.  the  highest  heaven.  See 
Veiididad.,  xix.  ii8f. — 5.  The  heaven 
is  like  a  tent  with  its  curtain  (xix.  5, 
Isa.  xl.  22). — 6.  //;  the  waters,  i.e.  in 
the  upper  ocean  (cxlviii.  4,  Gen.  i.  7  ; 
strikingly  parallel  is  Am.  ix.  6).  Cp. 
E>ic.  Bill.,  'Creation,'  §6.  There 
Yahwe,    like    an    earthly    king,     has 

spacious    upper     chambers    (ilP^P) ; 

cp.  Jer.  xxii.  14. — 7.  Clouds  his  chariot. 
Unlike  those  deities  of  the  heathen 
who  ride  on  imaginary  winged  animals, 
Yahwe  is  borne  along  by  the  clouds 
on  the  'wings  of  the  wind.'  001 
may  involve  a  play  upon  ^TlD- — 
9  f.  On  the  three  possible  interpre- 
tations of  the  Hebrew  see  Driver, 
Tenses,  §195,  Ol/s.  ;  see  also  crit.  n. 

11-20.  The  psalmist  is  clearer  in 
one  point  than  Gen.  i.  9  f.  He  de- 
scribes the  earth  as  already  formed 
with  mountains  and  valleys,  invisible, 
because  covered  with  the  primitive 
flood  (Dinj^,  as  Gen.  i.  2),  and  only 

waiting  for  the  veil  to  be  raised. 
Gunkel  {Sch'dpf.  91)  observes  that  the 
expressions  used  with  reference  to  the 
sea  have  a  strong  mythical  colouring. 
The  Dragon  which  opposed  the  Light- 
god,  was,  according  to  one  myth,  not 
destroyed,  but  placed  in  confinement. 
See  E.  Bib.,  '  Dragon,'  §  4,  and  cp. 
Prov.  viii.  29,  Job  xxxviii.  8,  Jer. 
V.  22,  xxxi.  35. 

21.  The  vegetable  life  produced 
on  the  third  day  presupposed  the 
kindly  gift  of  springs  and  rivers,  and 
of  rain.  The  former  beautify  the 
valleys  (rather  wadys).  See  the  de- 
scription of  Canaan  (not  of  the  Negeb) 
in  Dt.  viii.  7,  xi.  10  f. — 24.  The  wild 
asses.  When  f;ir  away  in  the  desert 
(Job  .xxxix.  6),  these  wildest  of  beasts 
long  for  the  refreshing  streams. — 
27.  Upott  them,  i.e.  upon  the  trees  to 
which,  in  a  lost  couplet,  the  poet  must 
have  referred  ;  note  '  the  branches '  in 
/.  28.  Observe  that  no  singing-bird 
is  mentioned  as  such  by  name,  not 
even  the  bulbul,  a  songster  which,  as 
Tristram  says,  rivals  the  nightingale. — 
29.    By  the  viountains  the  poet  seems 


to  mean  the  highlands,  where  the 
grass  supplies  welcome  pasturage  for 
the  cattle  (see  /.  31). 

32.      Herbs,   It^i'.      Cp.  Gen.  i. 

II  f.,  29  f.  ;  iii.  18;  ix.  3;  Ex.  x. 
12-15.  The  term  includes  all  vege- 
table products. 

33  f.  The  reference  to  Ishmael 
(=Jerahmeel),  i.e.  the  Negeb,  must 
not  surprise  us.  In  ancient  times  the 
N.  Arabian  border-land  must  have 
been  brought  by  irrigation  into  a  high 
state  of  cultivation.  In  the  case  of 
what  is  called  '  Jerahmeel,' those  who 
have  studied  Critica  Biblica  may  call 
to  mind  the  '  wheat  of  Maacath  '  in 
I  K.  v.  25,  Ezek.  xxvii.  17,  and  the 
barley-harvest  at  Beth-jerahmeel  in 
Kuth  i.  22  ;  also,  with  regard  to  vine- 
culture.  Gen.  xlix.  11,  Judg.  ix.  27,  xv.  5; 
Jer.  xiii.  12;  and  in  the  case  of  Misiim 
the  definite  language  of  Isa.  xvi.  10,  and 
Ps.  Ixxx.  9.  Of  course,  there  were 
large  tracts  in  this  region  (see  E.  Bib., 
'Negeb')  which  were  incapable  of 
improvement ;  e.^i^.  in  Num.  xx.  5  the 
wilderness  of  Kadesh  is  contrasted 
with  Misrim  in  being  '  no  place  of 
seed,  or  of  figs,  or  of  vines,  or  of 
pomegranates ' ;  but  this  does  not 
affect  our  general  statement.  And  we 
must  remember  that  in  the  early 
'post-exilic'  period  Hebron  in  S. 
Judah  formed  part  of  Idumixa,  i.e., 
in    archaistic    language,    Jerahmeel. — 

DH^,  'bread-corn';   so  Isa.  xxviii.  28, 

XXX.     23.       Similarly    ^^\    here    '  the 

wine-plant,'  as,  in  Isa.  xvi.  10,  Jer. 
xl.  10,  12,  it  means  the  fruit  of  the 
vine.  At  Damascus  grapes  are,  equally 
with  bread,  a  part  of  the  people's  food 
from  August  to  December. 

35.  Trees  of  Tahwfe  are  those 
which  grow  wild,  especially  those  of 
unusual  size  (so  Num.  xxiv.  6). — 
Lebanon,  i.e.  the  southern  Lebanon  (or 
Gebalon).     See  on  xxix.  5,  Ixviii.  17. 

37.  The  vultures,  D"'D"13-  The 
ossifrage,  or  Liimmergeier,  is  meant. 
Its  nest  is  '  placed  on  an  inaccessible 
ledge  of  rocks'  (see  E.  Bib.,  'Ossi- 
frage').— 38.  The  asshitr-trees.  The 
'asshur'  or  'teasshur'  tree  was  possibly 
the  same  as  the  'algum,'  i.e.  the 
'jerahmeel'  tree.  It  was  one  of 
those  trees  which  were  used  for  build- 
ing ;  cp.  Lsa.  Ix.  13. 


PSALM    CIV, 


121 


40.  Marmots.  Strictly  the  'hyrax 
syriacus'  (see  E.  Bib.,  'Coney').  Cp. 
Prov.  XXX.  26. 

41.  Times  (D"'li^1Q)-  See  Gen. 
i.  14,  Sirach  xliii.  7  (UplH  "'^QT, 
*  legal  dates ').  For  the  priority  of 
the  moon,  cp.  'evening  and  morning' 
in  Gen.  i.,  and  'night  and  day'  m 
Assyrian  hymns. 

49.  Man  g-oes  forth.  The  poet 
with  wise  reticence,  only  hints  at  the 
work  of  the  sixth  day.  God  might 
declare  man  to  be  His  crowning 
work  ;  but  an  individual  man  could 
not  dwell  on  this  thought  (except 
in  the  manner  of  Ps.  viii.).  C)bserve 
that  the  poet  does  not  share  the  view 
of  labour  expressed  in  Gen.  iii.  17-19. 

51  ft".  The  psalmist  breaks  into 
an  admiring  eulogy  of  God's  wonders 
upon  the  earth,  but  soon  remembers 
that  the  sea,  with  all  its  stirring  life, 
has  been  omitted.  In  repairing  the 
omission,  he  gives  a  tribute  (cp.  Job 
xl.  \(ja)  to  the  greatest  of  the  taiini- 
niiii  ('dragons'),  to  whom  Gen.  i.  21 
only  refers  as  a  class  ('  the  great 
dragons').  The  mythological  character 
of  Leviathan  (still    clear   in  Job  xli.) 


is  forgotten  ;  he  has  become  merely 
a  wonderful  animal.  Guiikel  {Sihopf. 
57)  adheres  to  the  received  text,  in 
which  the  words  '  to  sport  with  '  are 
added.  These  words  are  no  unworthy 
gloss.  Popular  Hebrew  poetry  (in 
prose  and  verse)  admitted  a  sense  of 
humour  in  the  Creator  (see  Job  i.,  ii.). 
See  crit.  n.,  and  cp.  E.  Bib.,  'Behe- 
moth,' §3;  'Dragon';  'Leviathan.' 
For  the  Haggadic  stories  of  Leviathan 
see  Griinbaum,  ZDMG,  xxxi.  274  fif. 

67.  Cp.  cxlvi.  4,  Job  xxxiv.  14. — 
70.  Thou  reiiewest,  &c.,  i.e.  by  the 
constant  production  of  fresh  animal 
life.  —  79  f.  A  discordant  note  might 
be  held  to  be  forced  from  the  writer's 
lips  by  that  '  disproportioned  sin ' 
which  'jarred  against  nature's  chime  ' 
(Milton,  At  a  Solemn  Musick).  Pro- 
bably, however,  the  writer  is  thinking 
of  the  N.  Arabians,  who  to  him  were 
the  quintessence  of  wickedness ;  cp. 
on  Ps.  Ixxiii.,  and  see  Jewish  Kdigioiis 
Life,  p.  144. — The  editor  makes  the 
psalm  conclude  as  it  began  (/.  l), 
partly  to  soften  the  effect  of  the  pre- 
ceding words  (K.  J.  Grimm,  Liturgical 
Appendices,  1 901,  p.  14),  partly  to 
make  Ps.  civ.  resemble  the  companion 
psalm  ciii. 


Critical  Notes.  5.  M  rTlpDH  ;  G  6  o-reyti^wi'.  The  sense  is  not 
clear.  Read  ^TflDH  (H  and  p  confounded)  ;  cp.  Jer.  xxii.  14.  The  || 
passage  Am.  ix.  6  has  njiin.— 10.  M  "{^th  "^'^  .  But  TITS  is  fern.  ;  the 
text  of  Job  XX.  26,  Jer.  xlviii.  45  needs  revision.  Besides,  VDIli'D 
implies  a  plurality  of  agents.     Read  tOH^T  Ii^^}  (01.,  Bi.,  Du.). 

--T 

II.     M    G  IDV     Gunkcl    {Sch'dpf.,  91)  IDV     But  t'T'.  8,  9  suggest 

JTTD^  (written  perhaps  '"ID^)- — Read  HJIDD  (Gunkel).     Plural  not  used. 
T  :-T  T       : 

So  G  T  J. 

13.  M  ij~l"'D3  •  But  though  Dinn  might  be  masc,  yii^  must  be 
fern.  Hence  Ba.  supplies  T\hv  after  ID'DD  ;  cp.  Ezek.  xxxi.  15.  But 
this  produces  a  prosaic  result,  and  spoils  the  metre.  Besides,  DIH/I  too 
is  properly  fem.  'A  e  J,  Gr.,  Bi.,  We.  read  H/T'DD  ;  G,  Street  imD3  , 
TO   nepilioXaiov  avTov.     Read  HJ^DS  (Gu.  ;  Giesebrecht  in    GGA,    1895, 

T   -    . 

p.  596).     Konig's  objections  are  but  slight  {Synt.,  162,  n.  2). 

17.  AI  D"*!!!  "bV-  Hitz.  and  Wellh.  omit  /.  17  as  an  unhappy 
editorial  substitute  for  an  illegible  passage.  But  it  is  better,  with 
Gunkel,  to  read  D'~in"'?J.'Q  (cp.  D'^in*'?!',  /•  14).  D  was  worn  down 
into  \  and  then  the  clause  was  interpreted  by  evil.  26. 


122  THE    PSALMS. 

24.     M  D^JQ'i — in^li'"'.     The  phrase  '  frangere  sitim  '  is  not  Hebrew. 

G,  irpoa-ht^ovraL  uv.  fls  S('\//-ai'  avTcov.     Hence  Herz  restores  IH^lil'"'  i"^'-  27), 

and  suggests  that  DH^bli'*  may  have  fallen  out  after  QNQ^  as  a  dittogram 

of  the  next   word,  and   would  point  D^^i;2^•       We  must,    at   any   rate^ 

accept  T13ii'"'>    but    metre    forbids    us    to   take    more.      G    presupposes 

□XD^'S     Should  we  not  read  Qhii'^^':)  ? 

T     :  • 

28.     M  Q\v<3;'  Kt.;  Q^UJ'  Kr.     D^NSP  is  also  read.     If  the  reading 

•  t't:  •  t  t:   ■  •  t  -:  ° 

is  correct  it   is  an  Aram,  loan-word  (see  BDB,  s.v.).     G,  however,  has 

TTfrpwr.  I.e.  D^US  or  a''i<33  (cp.  Ruben,  J {2^,  Apr.,  1899,  p.  446,  n.  i), 
though  J«}*  gives  the  correction  Trrfpuiv  (whence  Herz  D'BJB,  assuming 
J3  to  have  fallen  out  as  a  dittogram  of  ]['*]2).  Read  probably  D"'E)''i'D 
(Isa.  wii.  6). 

30.  M  '^%^Vi2  nDQ.  How  can  the  rain  be  called  the  'fruit  of 
Yahwe's  work'?  The*  two  words  are  fragments  of  TT"'[p'«DnQ  •  Cp.  on 
Ixxii.  6. 

32.  M  j"llil3,\  This  ought  to  mean  'tillage,'  'work'  (7'.  23). 
Neither  sense  is  suitable  in  this  context.  Read  Jl'^DhJ  ;  cp.  h'tDn'?  , 
Gen.  i.  29  f. 

2) J  f.  Hitzig  would  omit  7'.  15.  His  other  omissions,  however,  are 
unjustitied,  and  we  shall  find  the  present  omission  to  be  equally  uncalled 
for.  *p^,  he  says,  is  not,  like  UVh^  drawn  directly  'from  the  earth  ' ;  the 
second  reference  to  UVh  is  troublesome  ;  and  there  are  grammatical 
difficulties  in  the  construction  of  v.  15.  These  and  all  other  important 
objections  disappear  when  a  more  thorough  criticism  has  been  applied 
to  the  text.  The  second  reference  to  UVh  ought  to  have  suggested  that 
7'.  15^  was  a  variant  to  v.  iii,b.  But  if  so,  what  are  we  to  make  of 
7'.  15^/3?  It  is  usually  explained,  'To  make  the  face  shine  with  oil,'  as  if 
the  line  were  parallel  to  v.  14/;  ('to  bring  forth  bread-corn  from  the 
earth'}.  But  this  is  unjustifiable.  Had  the  writer  meant,  'and  to  bring 
forth  oil  which  makes  the  face  to  shine,'  he  would  have  said  this,  for  he 
is  not  addicted  to  forced  phraseology.  It  is  true  that,  if  he  had  said  this 
he  would  have  been  laughed  at,  seeing  that,  as  Hitz.  remarks,  it  was  the 
head,  not  the  face,  that  was  anointed.  On  the  other  hand,  'more  than 
oil'  (Hitz.)  is  unnatural.  Clearly  pli'Q  D'^S  '?MJin'?  must  be  corrupt, 
and  the  more  so  because  the  existence  of  a  verb,  tTI^i,  'to  shine,'  in 
Biblical  Hebrew  is  problematical.  And  one  ought  to  see  at  once  (i)  that 
t'\T.in'?  comes  from  □n'?  ^}':i^^'?,  (2)  that  UVh  is  a  (natural)  scribal 
error,  and  (3)  that  D'^3  must  be  miswritten  for  some  word  corresponding 
to  ]^^  in  7'.  I5<in,  and  meaning  vine.  The  word  required  is  [D'JJBJ- 
Lastly,  1,';2'ii';t3  must  also  be  miswritten,  and  experience  warns  us  that, 
when  corrupt,  ya^V  regularly  stands  for  '^J^J.V.SIi''' ,  which  is  a  synonym  of 
t'Ni'^n")^  (=  the  Negeb).  We  can  now  turn  to  7'.  15^0  and  7'.  15/'. 
Obviously  n"Jtt'^  is  not  what  we  expect  here.     We  require  H^a*,  and  in 


PSALM    CIV.  123 

consequence  ^i'^J^J"^^t'  must  represent  words,  or  a  word,  stating  where 
the 'wine-plant' (see  exeg.  note)  grew.  '^i'lJJ^  sometimes  (see  on  Ivi.  2, 
xc.  3)  comes  from  a  corrupt  form  of  '^Si'QIi'^,  which  word  is  certainly  to 
be  expected.  Here,  however,  we  have  also  2,2.*?  to  account  for,  and  3./, 
z'.e.  72. y  is,  according  to  rule,  a  shorter  form  of  ^^2-  1J.  therefore,  must 
have  been  inserted  later,  and  the  true  symbol  for  'Qli'"'  here  is  73li?J< 
(see  Crz't.  Bil>.  on  2  S.  ii.  8)  ;  the  second  ^  is  the  preposition  ('Qlt^^2). 
In  V.  l^b  "1370''  presumaljly  comes  from  HZ'y^  (cp.  Gen.  i.  11  f.,  xl.  47). 
Thus  the  alternative  couplets  are, — 

VisrT-]D  urh  N'-iiin^   {a) 
b'ii.yiy^!^2  n^^T  t'i 

nv};'  biiyr2'^'2  unb^ 

35.     G   has  TO.  $vXa  ToO  ireSi'oD  =  n';:r    ''iiy   (?''"TIi^  '')iV)-—37  f-    M 

D^nSi-     Objections,  (i)  '  birds'  in  general  do  not  build  their  nests  in  the 

•  t:- 
cedars  ;  (2)  D^~)3^  usually  has  a  fem.  verb  (Kon.,  §  252a).     The  remedy 

is  plain.     Read,   not  D^")Ii^2   (Gratz),  but  D^D"13-     See  exeg.  note. — M 

nJn*3  D^ii'in^  rn^DH.     But  the  stork   prefers  chimney-tops  to  trees, 

T    ••  •         :         T  •  -: 

and  had  a  tree  been  mentioned  in  ?'.  17/^  the  poet  would  have  contrived 

to  mention  another  kind  of  tree  in  a.     The  remedy  is  suggested  by  G, 

which  gives,  for  M's  Q^ti^TIQ,    ';yetroi   avrui',  i.e.    Dli^Nn3.    (Cappellus, 

Critica  Sacra,  286).     This  is  right  so  far  as  ti'>tn^  is  concerned.    But  there 

is  a  deeper  corruption  to  heal.    TDH ,  like  Din  (Judg.  i.  34),  may  represent 

")ini^^J<.     We  know  of  a  "llIi^Kjl  tree,  and  in  Assyrian  of  a  fragrant  tree, 

like  a  cedar,  called  hasiiru  (Del.,  Ass.  HIVB,  295a).     See  exeg.  note. 

Read  DrCH  D'^Tint:'  I^^SI^.     Possibly  Dti^'lli'X  (which  Street  as  long 

ago  as  1790  took  for  a  combination  of  two  readings)  represents  (i)  Qti', 

(2)  D^"1Ii'i^)  a-  marginal  correction. 

41  f.  M  nVV.  Read  rv'W-—^l  TIV  'A  2  iyvwHiae,  whence  (not 
very  suitably)  Ba.  J^l%  referring  to  Job  xxxviii.  12,  where,  however,  read 
rT7T7;^V  Here  read  'ySiy^  (Gr.,  Herz,  l^*-*).  Herz  compares  the  faulty 
"'jn^nV  in  I  S.  xxi.  3.— Read  ^^i  J;:D  (/.  47)  ;  so  Bickell. 

T 

52.  The  stanza  is  incomplete. — 54.  M  'ip'Jp  (so  Baer,  Ginsb.,  with 
Vss.,  most  MSS.  and  edd.,  and  Rashi  ;  not  1^"^ — ).  The  sense  'thy 
property'  is  not  very  suitable  ;  nor  would  the  plural  greatly  help. 
Parallelism  requires  either  '  thy  glory '  or  some  attribute  of  God.  The 
nearest  suitable  word  is  ^nj^jn  (Jer.  xvi.  13). — 54.  Insert  ^^i^7p  (metre). 
—55.  nr.     Read  riVV  or  PT't^V  ■     Note  Pasek. 

T       .    T 

59  f.     M  jli^iS.     But  the  ships  do  not  wait  for  food,  nor  can  the 
•  t: 
Leviathan  be  classed  with  them.     Gunkel,   nVJ''>? .     Cp.    the    Silurian 

poet,  H.  Vaughan,  who   calls  the  whale  'the  shipmen's  fear.'     Rather 


124  THE    PSALMS. 

D^i^3r>  (Ixxiv.  13.  cxlviii.  7).  See  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Leviathan.'— Read  \T\'''t>'\  ■ 
— M  closes  7'.  26  with  ill"prT'l£7'p  ;  G  i^nai^av  avTco.  This  overloads  the 
line.  It  is  also  improbable  that  this  humorous  expression  would  have 
been  used  here.  If,  however,  the  metre  can  be  stretched  so  far,  we 
might  read  l^'li^JJ?  >  i-c  Leviathan  was  the  prince  of  the  sea-animals 
(see  E/ii.  Bib.,  '  Behemoth,'  §§  2,  3).     Note  Pasek  after  this  second  HT  • 

68.     IVI  D")3i^ .     Read  probably  ISV,  as  Job  xxxiv.  15,  with  Budde 
(on  Job  xix.  25).     The  D  in  M  may  be  due  to  the  influence  of  Dm*) . 

T 

76  f.     M  nijr^  •     Read  •'li::3;'3  ;  cp.  on  xxxix.  2,  cxlvi.  2.— AI  '^JT'V  . 
Read  probably  •'"I'^cr  (Gr.).— At  the  end,  M  gives  n"*l'?':)rT .     See  Introd! 


PSALM    CV. 

1  RIMETERS.  Israel's  liistory  from  the  covenant  with  Abraham  to  the 
entrance  into  the  Promised  Land.  Cp.  Ps.  Ixxviii.,  which  is  here  imitated. 
Verses  1-13=1  Chr.  xvi.  8-22.  G  places  'Hallelujah'  at  the  head  of  this 
psalm  instead  of  at  the  end  of  Ps.  civ.  This  seems  more  original.  Cp. 
Ps.  cvi.,  and  see  E.  Bi/>.,  'Hallelujah.'  (But  originally  'Hallelujah'  seems 
to  have  been  'Of  the  Jerahmeelites ' ;    see  Introd.). 

0/  the  Jerahmeelites. 

I  Give  thanks  unto  Yahwe,  proclaim  his  name,  I 

Make  known  his  exploits  among  the  peoples. 
Sing  to  him,  chant  praise  to  him,  2 

Discourse  ye  of  all  his  wonders. 

Glory  ye  in  his  hoi}'  name,  3 

Let  the  heart  of  those  rejoice  that  seek  Yahwe  ! 
Have  recourse  to  Yahwe  and  his  strength,  4 

Seek  his  face  continually. 

Remember  the  wonders  that  he  has  done.  5 

10         His  portents  and  the  judgments  of  his  mouth, 

O  offspring  of  Abraham  his  servant,  6 

Ye  children  of  Jacob  his  chosen. 

He,  Yahwe,  is  our  God  ;  7 

His  judgments  are  in  all  the  earth. 

He  remembers  his  covenant  for  ever,  8 

The  word  that  he  has  sent  forth,  for  a  thousand 
generations, — 


PSALM    CV.  125 

He  whose  covenant  was  with  Abraham,  9 

And  whose  oath  was  unto  Isaac, 

And  who  confirmed  it  to  Jacob,  10 

20  To  Israel  as  an  everlasting  covenant.^ 

When  they  were  yet  few  in  number,  12 

And  sojourners  in  the  highlands  of  Maacath, 
When  they  went  about  from  nation  to  nation,  13 

From  one  kingdom  to  another  people. 

He  suffered  no  man  to  oppress  them,  14 
And  chastised  kings  for  their  sakes, 

+Saying+,  '  Touch  not  my  loyal  one,  1 5 
And  do  my  prophet  no  harm.' 

And  he  called  a  famine  upon  the  land,  16 

30  He  broke  altogether  the  staff  of  bread. 

He  sent  a  man  before  them  ;  17 

Joseph  was  sold  to  the  Arabians  ; 

They  galled  his  feet  with  fetters,  18 

His  soul  felt  pain  with  the  iron. 

Until  the  time  that  his  word  came  to  pass,  19 

When  the  saying  of  Yahwe  stood  the  test  ; 

The  king  sent  and  loosed  him,  20 

The  ruler  of  peoples,  and  let  him  go  free  : 
He  made  him  lord  of  his  house,  2i 

40  Supreme  over  all  his  possessions, 

To  correct  his  princes  at  will,  22 

And  to  chastise  the  ancients  of  Jerahmeel  ; 
So  Israel  came  into  Misrim,  23 

And  sojourned  in  the  land  of  Jerahmeel. 

And  he  made  his  people  very  fruitful,  24 

And  made  them  more  numerous  than  the  Misrites  : 
He  turned  their  heart  to  hate  his  people,  25 

To  deal  craftily  with  his  servants. 

He  sent  Moses  his  servant,  26 

50  And  Aaron  whom  he  had  chosen. 

By  his  word  he  produced  signs,  27 

And  portents  in  the  land  of  Jerahmeel.- 

'  Saying,  To  thee  will  I  give  the   land  of   Kenaz,  as  your  assigned  posses- 
sion (v.  II).  2  ishmael. 


126  THE    PSALMS. 

He  sent  darkness,  and  they  did  not  28 

See  any  one  his  fellow. 

He  turned  their  waters  into  blood,  29 

And  killed  their  fish. 

Their  stream  swarmed  with  frogs,  30 

[They  came  up]  into  the  inner  chamber  of  their  king. 
He  spake,  and  the  dog-flies  came,  31 

60         And  gnats  in  all  their  region. 

As  rain  he  gave  them  hail,  32 

Flaming  fire  in  their  land. 

He  smote  their  vines  and  their  fig-trees,  33 

And  broke  in  pieces  the  trees  of  their  region. 

He  spoke,  and  locusts  came,  34 

Cankerworms  without  number, 

And  ate  up  every  herb  in  their  land,  35 

And  consumed  the  fruit  of  their  ground. 

He  smote  every  first-born  in  their  land  ;  36 

70         The  firstlings  of  all  their  strength  ; 

So  he  brought  them  forth  with  silver  and  gold,  37 

Not  a  man  stumbled  among  their  tribes. 

The  Misrites  rejoiced  at  their  departing,  38 

For  dread  of  them  had  fallen  upon  them. 
He  spread  out  a  cloud  for  a  canopy,  39 

And  fire  to  give  light  by  night. 

They  asked,  and  he  brought  quails,  40 

And  satisfied  themVith  bread  of  heaven. 
He  opened  the  rock,  and  waters  gushea  out  ;  41 

80         Streams  coursed  through  the  desert. 

For  he  remembered  his  holy  promise  42 

To  Abraham  his  servant, 

And  brought  forth  his  people  with  joy,  43 

His  chosen  ones  with  ringing  cries. 

And  gave  them  the  lands  of  the  nations,  44 

And  they  took  possession  of  the  gains  of  the  peoples, 
That  they  might  keep  his  statutes,  45 

And  observe  his  laws. 


PSALM    CV 


127 


7.  Have  recourse,  &c.  This 
applies  surely  as  much  to  Jews  who 
were  '  afar  off'  as  to  those  who  were 
'near'  (Isa.  Ivii.  19).  In  private 
chambers  and  in  synagogues  experience 
had  proved,  in  the  period  of  the  Psalms, 
that  the  divine  lovingkindness  radiated, 
as  it  were,  from  Zion  to  any  dry  and 
thirsty  corner  of  the  earth.  Q'i^.  Jewish 
Religious  Life,  pp.  250  ff. 

II.  His  servants.  A  forcible 
reading  (see  crit.  n.).  '  Seek  Yahwe, 
inasmuch  as  ye  are  his  servants.'  Cp. 
1  Chr.  xvi.  13,  where  the  reading 
'  Israel '  instead  of  '  Abraham  '  is  still 
more  suggestive  of  the  plural  'ser- 
vants.'— 15  f.    Cp.  cxi.  5,  9. 

(Gloss.)  To  thee  'cvill  I  give,  &c. 
See  Gen.  xiii.  14  f.,  xxviii.  13,  xxxv. 
12. — Kenaz.  An  archaic  name  for  the 
Negeb  (see  on  Gen.  xi.  31). 

21.  Tbe  higrhlands  of  Maacatb. 

'  Maacath '  is  sometimes  used  loosely, 
like  Ashhur,  as  a  synonym  for  '  Jerah- 
meel.'  Cp.  on  xvi.  5,  Ix.  8.  Observe 
that  Maacah,  Absalom's  mother,  was 
a  Geshurite,  i.e.  Ashhurite ;  her  father 
■was  Talmai,  ben  Ammihur,  which  is 
corrupted  from  '  Ishmael,  ben  Jerah- 
meel'  (2  S.  iii.  3,  xiii.  37).  The 
psalmist  has  the  tradition  which  placed 
the  wanderings  of  the  patriarchs  in 
the  Negeb.     See  on  /.  32. 

24.  From  one  kingrdom.  Cp. 
cxxxv.  II,  'the  kingdoms  of  Kenaz' 
(so  read),  and  see  Crit.  Bib.,  on 
Josh.  xii.  7  ff. 

26.  Chastised  kings,  i.e.  the 
kings  of  Misrim  (Gen.  xii.)  and  of 
Gerar  (Gen.  xx.,  xxvi.). — 27  f.  My 
loyal  one.  See  on  xvi.  10,  and  on  the 
reading  crit.  n.  Abraham  is  more 
especially  meant ;  cp.  'Abraham  my 
friend '  (Isa.  xii.  8).     In  the  ||  line,  he  is 


called  my  prophet  (cp.  Gen.  xx.  7) ; 
so  in  Ixxxix.  20  the  prophet  Nathan 
is  called  '  thy  (Yahwe's)  loyal  one.' — 
32.  To  the  Arabians,  i.e.  to  the 
Misrites.  Misrim  is  distinct  from 
the  land  of  Kenaz  (gloss  on  /.  20)  ; 
cp.  Gen.  xiii.  7,  'Whence  come  ye? 
And  they  said.  From  the  land  of 
Kenaz'  (so  read).  But  not  less  than 
the  land  of  Kenaz  (broadly  speaking, 
the  Negeb),  it  can  be  called  'Arabia' 
(cp.  /.  32)  and  Jerahmeel  (//.  42,  50). 

34.  His  soul,  &c.  Cp.  '  lest  he 
tear  my  soul '  (vii.  3). 

35.  His  ^ord,  i.e.  Joseph's  in- 
terpretation of  the  dreams,  which  was 
also  the  saying  (cp.  m")/2K,  xii.  7) 
of  Yahwe. 

41  f.      Princes    and    ancients, 

virtual  synonyms.  The  text-reading 
(against  which  see  crit.  n.)  may  in- 
volve a  contemptuous  allusion  to  the 
ill-justified  reputation  of  the  Mi.srite 
princes  for  wisdom.  Cp.  Isa.  xix.  11, 
but  also  I  K.  v.  II  {Crit.  Bib.). 

44.     Tbe    land  of  Jerahmeel. 

See  on  /.  32,  Ixxviii.  51. — ^45.  p'ery 
fniitful.  Cp.  Gen.  xvii.  6. — 46.  Moix 
numerous.  Cp.  Ex.  i.  9. — 51.  Cp. 
Ixxviii.  43,  Ex.  x.  2. 

53.  The  ninth  plague  (Ex.  x.  21  f. ) 
is  placed  out  of  its  order.  See  crit.  n. — 
57.  Their  stream.  For  "IK^,  see  on 
Gen.  xii.  i. 

69  f.  Cp.  i.xxviii.  51.— 72.  v:oai:o. 

The  suffix  should  refer  to  Israel  (Num. 
xxiv.  2)  ;  a  reference  to  Yahwe  is  less 
natural.     Cp.  on  cxxii.  4. 

78. ,    Bread    of   heaven.       Cp. 

Ixxviii.  241^,  '  corn  of  heaven.' — 79  f. 
Cp.  Ixxviii.  20,  15,  16.  — 82.  Abraham 
his  servant.     So  Gen.  xxvi.  24. 


Critical  Notes.  9.  Read  j"Tlhj':)3J  (Du.)— 11  f.  Bii.,  atfer  C,  reads 
TTQ^  ■  This  is  plausible  because  of  VlTf^  in  v.  bb.  But  the  object  of 
the  beginning  of  the  psalm  is  to  glorify  the  patriarchs,  especially 
Abraham.  It  is  better  to  keep  i"lllj7,  and  to  read  il^IlB  (so  Du.).  In 
?'.  43  (Vn^n2)  the  object  is  to  glorify  Israel,  in  whom 'the  promise  to 
Abraham  is  fulfilled. 

17.  M  jyy^  "1•i>^J  produces  a  very  prosaic  clause.  Read  probably 
i/nZl  (Du.).  — 19.  Omit  prht  Jacob  the  patriarch  being  meant  (Du.;.  It 
probably  conies  from  a  dittographed  ^p^^*?. 


128  THE    PSALMS. 

Gloss  (?'.  II);  prosaic  and  unmetiical  (Bi.,  Du.)  ;  l^s.  Ixxviii.  55 
suggests  a  phrase.  \'aleton's  objection  to  the  gloss-theory  {ZATW, 
1893,  p.  270,  note)  presupposes  M's  text. 

22.  M  7\2.  DHJT  tOyQ3  •  What  does  "2  mean  ?  '  Elsewhere 
"almost";  here,  as  in'isa.  i.  9,  instead  of  tDy!2'  (Hupf.).  But  tDJ^D  in 
Isa.  I.e.  is  corrupt  (see  Cf'if.  Bib.);  for  better  instances  see  Lexx.  Bickell, 
yiSn  "2  ;  Duhm,  "lyjDn  "2  .     Read  probably  JlDj^?  ."in^  Dnjll. 

27  f-  ■'J^'QJ— TT'Ii^^.  Is  there  a  true  parallelism  here  ?  There  is 
no  evidence  that  the  prophets  were  anointed,  except  in  i  K.  xix.  16, 
where  Elisha  is  represented  as  succeeding  Elijah  as  Hazael  succeeded 
Benhadad  ;  in  other  words,  he  was  as  much  a  king  as  a  prophet  (Weinel, 
{ZATW,  1898,  p.  57).  But  the  traditions,  as  we  have  them,  do  not 
assign  a  prophetic-royal  character  to  the  patriarchs.  'Prophets'  they 
might  be  called  in  the  sense  of  Gen.  xx.  7,  but  surely  not  '  anointed  ones,' 
i.e.  princes.  We  have,  therefore,  no  choice  but  to  suppose  that  here  as  in 
XX.  7,  xxviii.  8,  Ixxxiv.  10,  H^IiO  has  been  either  miswritten  for,  or  altered 
from,  T'Dn.  Read  ^^<"'33— n-Dn  (the  sing.,  because  God  could  only 
refer  to  one  case  at  a  time  ;  Wellh.). 

32.  M  12yt'-  Rather  D''2"iy'?.  thus  providing  a  subject  for  ^3^ 
{v.  18).  See  exeg.  note.— 34.  Read  b]p>'l'l  (S,  01.,  Bi.,  &c.),  and  for  the 
weak  nia  read  n3J<3  (Ixix-  30)-— S^-M  "innSl^i  ;  unsuitable.     Read 

"t  T  T  -:  T 

nSliiJ-     1'he  error  arose  from  the  two  neighbouring  verbs  with  suffix  "1,1. 
T  t:  • 

41  f.     ]\I  ids'?.      G  tov  TratSeCcrat,  whence  Herz  and  Duhm  nD^*? . — 

Read  1^'3i3  (Du.).— M  D3nV      Halevy,  DnO^     But  why  the  suffix? 

Probably  DnD'  is  a  condensation  of  r\2^  QH  •     In  vv.  23  and  27  QIl 

represents  DHl^  (=  ':'N^nn^).     Read,  therefore,  as  /.  42,  '^^}::^T  ^:pn 

nD*"  •     See  exeg.  note  on  /.  32. 

44.     Read  nm^  V1^^3  ">^"'1-     ^Pr"*  i^  a  corruption  of  Dm',  which 

is  a  correct  marginal  gloss  on  UH  (see  on  /.  41  f.,  and  on  Ixxviii.  51). — 

46.    T1-i?2-      Rather    D''"i:i?3!3    (Du.).     Note    'he    turned  their   heart' 
TT  •  •  :   •   • 

(/.  47)- 

qi  f.     M  n21  U1  ^^V ■     Hupf.,   Del..  Bd.,  ic,  after  G  S  '.'l  2  J 
.. :    .       T  T 

read  UV  (cp.  Ixxviii.  43).  But  this  is  not  enough  ;  'D'i^  ^"131  is  sus- 
picious |cp.  on  Ixv.  4).  Read  jliDS  U^  i"in73  •— M  D/jT .  See  on 
/.  41  f.     For  the  gloss  on  Dn  see  next  note. 

54.  IM  T"l2~T'nN  ^TZ  S"?! .  \'arious  explanations,  all  inadequate, 
have  been  oftered.  Jiickell  with  myself  in  /V.'^*,  also  Kautzsch  in  1894, 
cut  the  knot  with  G  Sexta  and  S,  by  omitting  \^^  ;  in  this  case  •11,'DM 
will  be  a  frequentative  perfect.  Hitzig,  on  the  other  hand,  would  read 
Tl'Jvi'  vh")  •     Of  these  two  readings  the  former  is  the  more  adequate  (cp. 


PSALM    CV.  129 

Del.  ad  loc),  but  how  are  we  to  account  for  J^'^  ?  From  our  present 
point  of  view,  however,  Yy^  K7T  and  IITDS  are  possibly  corruptions  of 
bi^Drn''  and  '?><J7D1i'"'  ;  these  words  may  well  have  been  marginal 
glosses  on  DH  in  v.  27.  Nothing  is  more  common  than  for  ^^  in  "nn"* 
to  be  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  name,  and  to  be  prefixed  to  a 
corrupt  form  of  (^ni^  as  S?,  while  Il"TJll<,  following  the  parallel 
of  I  S.  xvii.  34  (OvV.  Bib.),  may  possibly  come  from  T^ti'^  through 
72Jnj<  (cp.  7y^nj<,  I  K.  xvi.  31).  Can  the  possibility  be  made  into  a 
probability?  It  can.  The  DH  in  v.  23  has  an  explanatory  gloss  ;  it  is 
not  improbable  that  the  OH  in  f.  27  also  has  a  gloss.  Granting  this,  it 
is  also  probable  that  if  the  writing  of  the  original  words  of  ?'.  28(5  became 
indistinct,  only  some  of  the  letters  being  clearly  legible,  the  scribe  might 
suppose  '^t^^Dti'^  '7^{i2^"T' ,  corruptly  written  according  to  some  of  the 
extant  types  of  corruption  as  ^IDi^  ["1i!2"l]  1"1Q  'i^'li  to  be  the  marginal 
correction  of  v.  22)1),  due  to  an  earlier  scribe.  The  original  words  were, 
presumably,  not  a  statement  of  the  resultlessness  of  the  '  sign  '  of  dark- 
ness, but,  as  in  the  other  poetic  passages  on  the  plagues,  a  description  of 
the  chief  feature  of  the  particular  plague.  Turning  to  Ex.  x.  21  ff.,  we 
find  one  detail  which  includes  the  necessary  X7  ,  and  in  other  respects 
too  closely  resembles  what  we  must  assume  to  have  been  the  general 
appearance  of  the  original  words.  The  words  of  7/.  22,iia  are  ^^^'^~^it' 
VnN~nh}  ti'^hJ  .  These,  with  the  exceptions  that  l^T  has  to  be  sub- 
stituted for  Vn^^  and  that  T  is  prefixed,  we  must  suppose  to  have  become 
so  far  illegible  that  it  was  possible  for  2"Tj~IJ^  IID  N7[l]  to  be  adopted 
as  the  true  reading  of  v.  28^,  with  the  addition  of  V"!  (from  1J?"))  to  HI . 
But  this  is  still  not  a  complete  explanation  of  the  phenomena.  No  critic 
has  stumbled  at  "jli^n^T ,  and  yet  it  is  decidedly  very  questionable.  How 
is  it  to  be  rendered?  The  natural  rendering  in  this  context  is  'and  it 
became  dark'  (so  Ew.,  01.,  Che.'^',  Du.),  and  it  is  possible  that  this 
{i.e.  'TJii^rT'T)  is  meant  by  Kt.,  while  Kr.  prefers  "l^ti^ffT  ;  so  too  in  Jer. 
xvi.  13.  This  compels  us  to  suppose  that  in  later  Hebrew  the  fem.  was 
not  necessary  in  such  cases.  From  our  vantage-ground,  however,  we  can 
see  that,  however  we  point  it,  'H^T  is  superfluous.  It  has  simply  arisen 
out  of  a  dittographed  "JliTT,  and  the  right  reading  of  the   couplet  almost 

certainly  is  ^J;-^-J-l^^  '^^'i^  IN")  1  ^"7^  y^n  U'^W . 

57  f.  See  Ex.  vii.  28.  The  verb  being  masc,  for  D2i")N  read  Q"li»(^ 
(Duhm).— Insert  ^fy;;!  (01.,  Du.)  or  -l^ir  (Bi.,  Che.(i>)-— For  □HO'^a 
read  U^112  (Briggs)  ;  Du.,  Dil  ^^2^2  ■ 

68.     M  b'y^''\  (repetition).     Read  ^y^  (Du.).— 73.  Read  T\^V  (see 

/.  74)-— 77-  Kead  t>^t  (G  and  all  vss.,  Del.,  Bi.,  Ba.,  &c.). 
-:  T 

80.      Read  Jl^lnj  (('  Truraun)  ;   so  Gr. 


II. 


130  THE     PSALMS. 

PSALM    CVI. 

.1  RIMETERS.  A  liturgical  combination  of  prayer  and  praise  (cvi.'i>),  followed 
by  a  retrospect  of  the  early  history,  designed  for  instruction.  Fv.  47  f.  = 
I  Chr.  XV i.  34-36. 

C\I. —  I. 

0/  tJie  Jeralimeelites.  I 

I         Give  thanks  to  Yahwe,  for  he  is  gracious, 
For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

Who  can  tell  out  the  prowess  of  Yahwe,  2 

And  utter  all  his  famous  deeds  ? 

Happy  are  those  that  heed  duty,  3 

And  practise  right  at  all  times, 

That  they  may  experience  the  blessings  of  th}^  chosen,        5 
That  they  may  share  the  joy  of  thy  nation. 1 

Remember  us,  O  Yahwe  !  with  +thy+  favour  towards 

thy  people,  4 

10       Take  notice  of  us  with  thy  succour, 

*  *  ■.;:  * 

Linking  couplet. 

We  have  sinned  with  our  fathers,  6 

We  have  done  perversely,  wickedly. 

CVI. — 2. 

I         Our  forefathers  in  Misrim  7 

Considered  not  thy  wonders  ; 

They  remembered  not  thy  many  loving-kindnesses, 
And  provoked  the  Most  High  by  the  sea  of  Suph. 

But  he  delivered  them  because  of  his  name,  8 

That  he  might  make  his  prowess  to  be  known  : 
He  threatened  the  sea  of  Suph,  and  it  became  dry,  9 

He  led  them    through  the    deeps   as   ^-through+   the 
wilderness. 

'  Tiiat  they  may  triunij)!!  witli  thine  inheritance. 


PSALM    CVI. — 2.  131 

He  delivered  them  from  the  hand  of  their  hater,  10 

10       He  redeemed  them  from  the  hand  of  the  enemy  : 

The  waters  covered  their  foes,  ij 

Not  one  of  them  remained. 

Then  they  beUeved  his  words,  12 

They  sang  his  famous  deeds. 

+But+  soon  they  forgot  his  works,  13 

They  did  not  wait  on  for  his  purpose. 

Lust  came  upon  them  in  the  wilderness,  14 

And  they  put  God  to  the  test  in  the  desert. 
Then  he  gave  them  their  desire,  15 

20       But  sent  disgust  into  their  soul. 

They  envied  Moses  in  the  camp,  16 

And  Aaron,  the  holy  one  of  Yahwfe. 

The  earth  opened,  and  swallowed  up  Dathan,  17 

And  covered  the  company  of  Abiram.i 

They  made  a  calf  at  Horeb,  19 

And  worshipped  a  molten  image  ; 

And  exchanged  their  glory  20 

For  the  likeness  of  an  ox  that  eats  herbage. 

They  forgot  God  their  deliverer,  21 

30       Who  had  done  great  things  in  Misrim, 

Wondrous  things  in  the  land  of  Jerahmeel,  22 

Terrible  things  b\'  the  sea  of  Suph.- 

And  they  rejected  the  desirable  land,  24 

They  believed  not  his  word. 

But  murmured  in  their  tents,  25 

They  hearkened  not  to  Yahwe's  voice. 

So  he  lifted  up  to  them  his  hand,  +to  swear+  26 

That  he  would  cause  them  to  fall  in  the  wilderness, 
Scatter  their  offspring  among  the  nations,  27 

40       And  winnow  them  in  the  lands. 

^  And  fire  kindled  on  their  company;  |  The  ilame  set  ablaze  the  wickid  {v.  18). 

-  And  he  resolved  to  exterminate  them,  but  that  Moses,  his  chosen  one,  came 
forward  into  the  breach  before  him,  lo  turn  away  his  wrath  from  destroying  (z/.  23). 


32  THE    PSALMS. 

They  bound  themselves  to  Baal-peor,  28 

And  ate  the  sacrifices  of  the  unclean, 

And  vexed  him  with  their  doings,  29 

And  a  plague  broke  in  upon  them. 

Then  Phinehas  stood  forth  and  mediated,  30 

And  so  the  plague  was  stayed  ; 

And  that  was  reckoned  to  him  as  merit  31 

For  all  generations,  for  ever. 

And  they  angered  him  by  the  waters  of  Meribah,  32 

50       And  it  went  ill  with  Moses  on  their  account  ; 

For  when  they  provoked  Yahwe's  spirit,  33 

He  spoke  rashly  with  his  lips.^ 

They  mingled  themselves  with  the  heathen,  35 

And  learned  their  works, 

And  served  their  idols,  36 

So  that  they  became  a  snare  to  them. 

And  they  sacrificed  their  sons  37 

And  their  daughters  to  the  Shedim  ; 

And  they  shed  innocent  blood,"  38 

60       So  that  the  land  was  polluted  with  bloodshed. 

They  became  unclean  through  their  works,  39 

And  whoresome  through  their  doings  : 

Then  did  the  anger  of  Yahwe  burn  against  his  people,      40 
And  he  abhorred  his  inheritance. 

And  he  gave  them  into  the  hand  of  the  nations,  41 

So  that  their  haters  ruled  over  them. 

And  their  enemies  oppressed  them,  42 

And  they  became  subject  to  their  power. 

Many  a  time  did  he  rescue  them,  43 

70       But  they — they  provoked  him  by  their  purpose.-' 

Yet  he  looked  upon  their  distress,  44 

When  he  heard  their  piercing  cry. 


'  They  did  not  exterminate  the  peoples,  as  Vahwe  had  commanded  them  ( t'.34). 

^  The  blood  of  their  sons  and  thei 
Is  of  Canaan. 

"*  They  vexed  him  by  their  iniquity. 


^  The  blood  of  their  sons  and  their  daughters,  whom  they  sacrificed  to  the 
idols  of  Canaan. 


8o 


PSALM    CVI. — I,  2.  133 

He  remembered  for  them  his  covenant,  45 

And  repented,  so  abundant  was  his  kindness, 
And  made  them  an  object  of  compassion  46 

In  the  sight  of  all  their  captors. 

Succour  us,  O  Yahwe  our  God,  47 

And  gather  us  from  among  the  nations, 
That  we  may  give  thanks  to  thy  holy  name 
And  make  our  boast  of  thy  famous  deeds. 


Doxology. 

Blessed  be  Yahwe,  Israel's  God,  from  age  to  age ; 
And  let  all  the  people  say,  Amen. 


48 


CVI.d'  I.  So  cvii.  I,  cxviii.  i, 
cxxxvi.  I.  — 9.  ]1^~)  and  PT^'W 
parallel,  as  in  Isa.  xlix.  8. — The 
'  linking  couplet '  strikes  a  fresh 
note;  cp.  I  K.  viii.  47,  Dan.  ix.  f, 
Baruch  ii.  12. 

CVI.<-)     4.      The  sea  of  Supb. 

Commonly  the  '  Red  Sea.'  But  there 
was  probably  an  earlier  view  of  the 
'sea'  in  connexion  with  a  very  different 
geography  of  the  early  migration  of 
the  Israelites.  See  E.  Bib.,  'Moses,' 
§§  10,  12,  and  Crit.  Bib.  on  Ex.  x.  19, 
but  cp.  E.  Bib.,  'Red  Sea.'  The  || 
in    Ixxviii.    17    gives,    for    ^ID'D^^j 

n*!!i:i.  —  8.   nian;i3.     see  isa. 

T.  -  :  ~ 

Ixiii.  13.     The  'Jl  of  the  yam-stiph  are 

spoken  of  in  Ex.  xv.  5,  8.  Properly 
mnjn  is  the  great  world-ocean,  but 
the  term  can  be  applied  to  any 
perennial  body  of  water  which  '  issues 
forth'  (Dt.  viii.  7)  from  the  earth. 
Cp.  on  xxxiii.  7. — 12.  See  Ex.  xiv.28. — 
13  f.  See  Ex.  xiv.  31,  xv.  i. — 16.  His 
purpose,  i.e.  his  plan  for  leading  them 
safely  to  the  Promised  Land.  God's 
'purpose,'  as  in  xxxiii.  11,  Ixxiii.  24, 
cvii.  II,  Isa.  v.  19,  xiv.  26,  xxviii.  29. — 
17.  Cp.  Ixxviii.  27-31,  Num.  xi.  4. — 
20.  See  crit.  n. — 23  f.  Korah  is  not 
named  ;  i.e.,  as  in  Dt.  xi.  6,  the 
account  of  JE  is  used,  not  that  of  P. — 
25.  At  Horeb.  So  Dt.  ix.  8,  cp. 
Ex.  xxxii.  I  ff.  (Sinai,  presumably). — 
27.  Their  glory,  as  Jer.  ii.  11. — 
31.  See  on  Ixxviii.  51,  and  cp.  cv. 
23,  27. — Gloss  {v.  23)  ;  cp.  Dt.  ix.  25  f. ; 


Ex.  xxxii.  10  ff.  ;  Num.  xiv.  11  ff.  ; 
'  in  the  breach,'  as  Ezek.  xxii.  30. — 
33.  Alluding  to  the  story  of  the 
spies  (Num.  xiv.  i  ff.)— Hll^H  yij^, 
from  Jer.  iii.  19,  Zech.  vii.  14. — 
35.     From    Dt.  i.  27.-37.    T»    J^i^J. 

So  Ezek.  XX.  23  ;  cp.  Num.  xiv.  30. — 
39  f.  From  Ezek.  xx.  23. — 41  f.  Cp. 
Num.  XXV.  2  f.  ;  see  crit.  n.  The 
luiclean,  i.e.  the  heathen  (Isa.  xxxv.  8, 
Hi.  i),  with  special  reference  to  objec- 
tionable rites  and  usages  (cp.  Hos. 
ix.   10). — 45  f.     See  Num.  xxv.  7  f. — 

Mediated,   7>'3''1,    viz.    by  slaying   the 

offender  in  the  name  of  Yahwe. — 
48.  Cp.  '  the  covenant  of  an  ever- 
lasting priesthood'  (Num.  xxv.  13). 

49-52.  See  Num.  xx.  3  ff.,  and 
cp.  Dt.  i.  37,  iii.  26. — Gloss  (v.  34). 
Cp.    Ex.   xxiii.   32  f.,    xxxiv.    II-15. — 

56.  A  snare,  '^"D'SI^,  as  Dt.  vii.  16,  &c. 

—58.      DHii^,     as     Dt.    xxxii.    17.— 

59.  Innocent  blood,  by  oppression  and 
injustice.  A  common  complaint  (see 
on  Isa.  i.  15,  lix.  3,  &c.).  The  gloss 
is  incorrect. — 69-72.  The  vicissitudes 
of  sin,  punishment,  pardon,  and  re- 
lapse (see  Judges).  By  their  purpose, 
Dn^i^H.  i-e-  ^y  their  obstinate  bias 
towards  idolatry.  Cp.  Jer.  vii.  24, 
where  JlijiyO  is  a  variant  to  milTi:^ 
(Duhm).  "The  glossator  {v.  i,zb)  ex- 
plains, Dji^^l  '  by  their  iniquity.'— 
The  Doxology  closes  Book  iv.  of  the 
Psalter. 


134  THE    PSALMS. 

Critical  Notes.  CVI.'^'  Arrangement  nearly  as  Duhm's  (in  his 
version  he  regards  v.  6  as  a  Hnking  verse). — 9  f .  Read12~)3T,  as  Du., 
after  G  'A  2  9  E'  S',  which  have  fjLvrjcrdriTi  fjfi^v  ;  G  also  (the  other  vss.  ?) 
1J"Tp3  ,  and  so  Du.     Cp.  v.  47. 

CVI.<-t  I,  4.  Point  Dni^a  (so  /.  30)  ;  read  ^TCn  (G  'A  J  T,  Ba.), 
and  for  DwP  read  p^bli^,  with  Venema,  Ba.,  Kau.,'Du.  ;  cp.  Ixxviii.  17. 
Q^■i7^J  (Houb.)  is  also  possible.     G  uvafiaivovm  =  Dvi'. 

20.     M  ]iji"1  unsuitable.     Read  J^*1T  (G  Trkna-u-oviw),  or  the  like,  with 

T  TT 

Clencus,  Gr.,  Dy.,  Du. ;  cp.  Num.  xi.  20. 

27.  01*1^3  is  one  of  the  18  Tikkune  Sopherim,  or  'emendations  of 
the  scribes,'  aiid  is  said  to  stand  for  Hi.!!) .  G^'c-^-akt^  also  T  (virtually), 
and  Rom.  i.  23  presuppose  11123  ,  i.e.  the  Shechinah.  Geiger  and 
Gratz  adopt  this,  but  see  Barnes,  Joiirti.  of  Theol.  Studies,  i.  387  fif. 

39.  For  second  ^sn'?  read  ysn'p  (Ezek.  xx.  23)  ;  so  Hitz.,  Del., 
Gr.,  Bi.,  Che.C,  Bii.,  Kau.,'  Hal.,  Du.'  "^  ' 

42.  M  D^riQ  ,  usually  explained  as  a  contemptuous  title  for  the  idol- 
gods,  as  opposed  to  Yahwe  the  ^n~'?>i  (cp.  Lagrange,  Etudes  sur  les 
religions  se'/nitiques,  1903,  p.  289).  But  there  is  no  obvious  reason  for 
such  a  title  here  ;  there  is  no  antithesis  such  as  that  in  cxv.  3-8.  Read 
Q"'Ni^tD  (see  exeg.  note). 

43.  Read  -imD'jTDI^'  ^'^^-  and  all  vss.  ;  so  Du.  Cp.  Ixxviii.  58.— 
51.  Forimi  read  rnh""  nil  (Bi.,  Du.). 

70.     M  DD'jiVIl.     Pedes  and  Duhm  iji:irn   (cp.   v.   13).     But  the 
T  T-:  -  ,    T-:  - 

superfluous    explanatory   clause   D^U'^    OD"^!,   or  rather   'V2    ID'^VD^T 

T  -:  -  T-  •  :  — 

(O  and  D  confounded),  supports  DD^i^^.     'See  exeg.  note. 


PSALM    CVII. 

i  RIMETERS.  A  composite  psalm,  out  of  which,  with  much  insight,  Duhm 
has  extracted  a  pleasing  and  symmetrical  hymn,  with  four  triplets  of  stanzas 
on  a  uniform  plan.  '1  he  inserted  passages  are  duly  noted  below.  The  fact 
(as,  on  metrical  and  other  grounds,  we  must  hold  it  to  be)  that  vv.  24,  26,  27, 
30  are  later  embroidery  may  be  the  true  cause  of  the  inverted  Nuns  (see 
Ginsburg,  Introd.,  343),  which  bracket  vv.  23-28;  so  Duhm.  In  Ps.'-'^  it 
was  remarked  that  the  psalmist,  '  to  fill  out  his  poem,  included  some  scenes 
not  connected  with  that  great  turning-point '  (the  Restoration),  and  that  '  at 
V.  33  the  treatment  becomes  more  meagre,  the  connexion  less  cared  for,  and 
the  thought  less  original;  the  refrains  too  are  dropped.'  A  consistent  critic 
cannot  stop  here  ;  vv.  33-43  require  to  be  set  apart  as  Ps.  cvii.(-'  Verse  40, 
where  we  again  find  an  inverted  Nun,  is,  however,  an  interpolation.  In  both 
compositions  a  reference  to  the  oft-repeated  oppression  of  the  N.  Arabians  can 
liaidly  be  questioned. 


PSALM    CVII.  135 

CVII. 1. 

Of  the  Jerahiueelites.  (cvi.,  end) 

I       Give  thanks  to  Yahvve,  for  he  is  gracious,  i 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

+So+  let  the  released  ones  of  Yahwe  say,  2 

Whom  he  has  released  from  the  hand  of  the  foe.^ 

Those  who  wandered  in  the  wilderness,  in  the  desert,  4 

Who  found  no  road  to  an  inhabited  city, 
Who  were  hungry  and  also  thirsty,  5 

Whose  soul  fainted  in  them  ; 

Who  cried  to  Yahwb  in  their  strait,  6 

10     And  he  rescued  them  from  their  distresses  ; 

Whom  he  directed  by  the  right  way,  7 

That  they  might  go  to  an  inhabited  city  : 

Let  them  give  thanks  to  Yahwe  for  his  kindness,  8 

And  for  his  wondrous  works  for  the  sons  of  men, 
For  he  has  satisfied  the  longing  soul,  9 

And  filled  the  hungry  soul  with  good. 

Those  who  sat  in  darkness  and  gloom,  10 

Prisoners  of  Ammon  and  Ishmael," 

Whose  heart  was  bowed  with  suffering,  12 

20     Who  stumbled  and  there  was  none  to  help  ; 

Who  cried  to  Yahwe  in  their  strait,  13 

And  he  delivered  them  from  their  distresses  ; 
Whom  he  brought  out  of  darkness  and  gloom,  14 

And  whose  bonds  he  burst  asunder  : 

Let  them  give  thanks  to  Yahwe  for  his  kindness.  1 5 

And  for  his  wondrous  works  for  the  sons  of  men, 
For  he  has  broken  gates  of  bronze,  16 

And  has  cut  bars  of  iron  asunder. 

Unrighteous  ones,  who  for  their  course  of  rebellion,  17 

30     And  for  their  iniquities  suffered  affliction. 

Whose  soul  abhorred  all  foods,  18 

And  who  touched  the  gates  of  +the  city  of+  Death  ; 

1  And  whom   he   galhcrcd  out  of  the   lands,  from    the   cast   and    from    the 
west,  from  Zaphon  and  from  Jaman  {v.  3). 

2  Because  they  had  defied  the  words  of  God,  |  and  reviled  the  purpose  of  the 
Most  High  (:'.  11). 


136  THE    PSALMS. 

Who  cried  to  Yaliwt;  in  their  strait,  19 

And  he  delivered  them  from  their  distresses; 
Whom,  sending  his  word,  he  healed,  20 

And  whose  life  he  snatched  from  the  pit  : 

Let  them  give  thanks  to  Yahwe  for  his  kindness,  21 

And  for  his  wondrous  works  for  the  sons  of  men, 
And  offer  sacrifices  of  thanksgiving,  22 

40         And  recount  his  works  with  resounding  song. 

Those  who  went  down  upon  the  great  waters  23 

In  the  companies  of  Asshur  and  Jerahmeel,' 
And  there  arose  a  stormy  wind,  25 

And  it  lifted  up  the  waves  of  the  sea  ;- 

Who  cried  to  Yahwe  in  their  strait,  28 

And  he  brought  them  out  of  their  distresses. 
Stilling  the  storm  into  a  murmur,  29 

And  the  waves  of  the  sea  were  hushed :  '^ 

Let  them  give  thanks  to  Yahwe  for  his  kindness,  31 

50         And  for  his  wondrous  works  for  the  sons  of  men  ; 

Let  them  extol  him  in  the  assembly  of  the  people,  32 

And  praise  him  in  the  conclave  of  the  elders. 

cvii. — 2 . 
I  He  turned  streams  into  a  wilderness,  33 

Running  springs  into  thirsty  ground  ; 

A  fruitful  land  into  a  salt  waste,  34 

For  the  wickedness  of  those  that  dwelt  therein. 

He  turned  the  wilderness  into  a  pool  of  water,  35 

A  dry  land  into  running  springs  ; 

And  there  he  made  the  hungry  to  dwell,  36 

And  they  founded  an  inhabited  city. 

And  sowed  fields  and  planted  vineyards,  37 

10         Which  yielded  fruitful  produce  : 

He  blessed  them,  and  they  multiplied  greatly,  38 

And  he  gave  them  cattle  in  abundance. 


1  1 


These  men  saw  the  works  of  Vahwe,  |  and  his  wonders  in  the  deep  (<'.  24). 

They  went  up  to  the  sky,  they  came  down  to  the  abyss,  |  their  soul  melted 
away  in  the  trouble. 

They  danced  and  staggered  Hke  a  drunkard,  |  and  all  their  skill  was  con- 
founded {vv.  26  f.). 

They  rejoiced  because  they  were  calmed,  |  and  he  led  them  to  a  roadstead 
of  ships  {v.  30). 


PSALM    CVII. 


-I,  2. 


137 


And  if  they  were  diminished  and  sank  low  39 

Through  the  Misrites,  and  those  of  Jerahmeel/ 
He  made  the  poor  safe  from  Amnion,  41 

And  made  +him+  families  like  a  flock. 

The  upright  see  it,  and  rejoice,  42 

All  unrighteousness  stops  its  mouth. 

Whoso  is  wise,  let  him  observe  these  things,  43 

20     And  let  them  consider  the  lovinskindnesses  of  Yahwe  ! 


CVII.(i)  3.  '>  >^Mi:i.  Cp.  Isa. 
Ixii.  12. — Gloss.  Cp.  Isa.  xliii.  5  f., 
xlix.  12.  In  the  former  passage,  the 
east  and  the  west  are  first  mentioned, 
then  Zaphon  and  Teman  (N.  Arabian 
regions).  In  the  latter,  probably, 
Jerahmeel,  Zaphon,  Arabia,  Ishmael. 
See  crit.  n. 

5-9.  Evidently  the  exiles  are 
meant  (cp.  Isa.  xli.  17).  ^tOyD/l, 
cp.  Ixxvii.  4  (note  context  as  revised). 

17-20.  The  land  of  exile  is  (like 
the  underworld  Sheol)  compared  to 
a  dark,  strong  fortress-prison.  Cp. 
cxliii.  3/',  Isa.  ix.  i. — 18.  Ammojt,  a 
short  form  for  'Jerahmeel.'  See 
crit.  n. — The  gloss  in  z/.  11  is  not 
'foolish'  (Du.)  ;  the  men  spoken  of 
are  the  Israelites,  whose  exile  was 
held  to  be  the  result  of  their  un- 
righteous courses  of  action. — 27.  Isa. 
xlv.  2  is  fulfilled. 

29-32.  The  sufferings  of  the  exile 
compared  to  sickness  (as  wften  in  the 
Psalms,  e.g.  vi.,  xxxviii.,  xli.).  See 
also  ciii.  4,  and  Job  xxxiii.  19-26 
(Elihu),  where  v.  20  closely  resembles 
our  V.  iSrt. — The  gates  of  Death.  .See 
on  ix.  14. 

35.      Sending   his   vrord.      See 

on  xxxiii.  6,  and  cp.  OP,  321. 

41-48.  A  scene  from  the  ex- 
perience of  post-exilic  Jews  (see  crit. 
n.).  Those  who,  to  save  a  long  land- 
journey,  obtained  a  passage  in  mer- 
chant-vessels,   amidst    the    traders    of 


Asshur  and  Jerahmeel,  i.e.  of  N. 
Arabia  (cp.  Baruch  iii.  23,  '  the 
merchants  of  Merran  and  Teman'). 
Suddenly,  as  in  the  case  of  Jonah,  a 
storm  arose,  but  through  prayer  to 
the  true  God  the  storm  gave  place  to 
a  calm.  Csmpanies,  as  in  EV  of 
Isa.  xxi.  13,  'ye  travelling  companies 
of  Dedanim.' — There    arose.     "TDP^ 

-T 

to  come  forward,  to  appear — i.e.  in 
the  case  of  the  winds,  from  the 
chamber  in  which  they  are  stored 
(Jer.  X.  13).  Cp.  E.  Bib.,  'Wind,' 
§  I. — A  nmrmiir,  HDI^T-  Cp.  I  K. 
xix.  12,  Job  iv.  16. — Note  the  glosses 
in  w.  2/0  f.,  30,  40.  yT\  is  to  go 
round  and  round,  as  in  a  festival- 
dance    (cp.    E.    Bib.,    'Dance,'    §2). 

Vy"^^^  fron*  ii-  V^'^  '  ^'^  confound.' 
A  roadstead  of  ships,  i.e.  a  safe  road- 
stead. Harbourage  was  scanty  on  the 
Palestine  coast.     See  crit.  n. 

CVII. (2)  I  i.  Cp.  Isa.  1.  2  ; 
XXXV.  7. — 3.  nn^D-     Cp.  Jer.  xvii.  6, 

Sirach  xxxix.  23  {p<ft-i]  =  X\7t^  in  the 
Ileb.    Sirach,    as     the    same    word  = 

TWht^  here).— 5  f.    From  Isa.  xli.  18. 

D^^"  ^hi:iD ,  like  Ass.  vnl^t  mt  = 
channels. 

10.  HNI^/l  """IS  is  strange,  but 
Du.'s  excisions  are  too  bold.  —  The 
insertion  in  v.  40  is  verbatim  from 
Job  xii.  2ia,  24/'. — 16.  Cp.  Job  xxi.  11. 
— 17.  From  Job  xxii.  19. — 18.  From 
Job  V.  16.— 19.    Cp.  IIos.  xiv.  9. 


Critical  Notes.  G  places  '  Hallelujah  '  at  the  head  of  Ps.  cvii.  ;  M,  less 
originally,  at  the  end  of  cvi. ;  cp.  on  cv.,  introd. — Gloss  in  v.  3.  For 
D^D  (originally  perhaps  written  'Q^D)  read  either  ]''Q*Q ,  '  from  the 
sotith,'  with  Clericus,  Kenn.,  Mich.,    Hupf.,  Gr.,    Bi.,    Che.*",  or  "JD^^:  , 


^  He  leads  captive  the  princes    of   Ishmael,  |  and  makes  them  wander  in  a 
pathless  waste  {v.  40). 


138  THE    PSALMS. 

'from  Jaman'  (=  Jerahmeel),  or  □"Il'iyD.  Cp.  Isa.  xlix.  12.  where 
D^Q  may  come  either  from  ]?2^'2  ,  or  frorn  D'^IlirO  (see  Cr//.  Bz7>.)  ;  also 
on  Jer.  i.  14,  iii.  12. 

5.  M  riyjp.  Read  ^J^'n,  with  01,  We.,  Du.  ;  cp.  vv.  10,  17,  23. 
ryiT  belongs  to  v.  d,b  (G  S  ;  also  Schnurrer,  01.  (?),  Gr.,  Bi.,  Che.<", 
Du.J. 

18.  M ':)nnT  ^J^^  ""ITS.  Usually  illustrated  by  job  xxxvi.  S,  but 
'bands  of  misery'  is  a  very  different  phrase  from  'misery  and  iron.' 
Considering  that  PK  sometimes  {e.g.  Iv.  1*1,  see  /"j.'-')  comes  from  p*3y, 
and  b'\'^1  {e.g.  i  S.  xvii.  7,  Crit.  Bib)  from  '?Sjai:'%  we  may  plausibly 
read  SVi7D2'"'T  '^^'}2  n''D»^  (see  exeg.  note). 

19.  Read  j;j3'',  G  €'Ta7r6ii/w(9»7  (Du.).— 29.  M  D•'':»^^}  .  ReadD'''^^^; 
the  exiles  are  meant  (cp.  Isa.  xlii.  22-25).  See  on  xxxviii.  6.  Neither 
Uh'n  (01.,  Gr.,  Bi.,  Che."',  Kau.,  Du.)  nor  D''':''?Q^<  (We.)  is  satisfactory. 

41  f.  'Those  that  go  down  upon  the  sea  in  ships'?  But  why  men- 
tion the  ships  ?  Q'n  "'IIV  is  sufficient  ;  cp.  Sirach  xliii.  24  (Heb.  text). 
'  That  do  business  in  great  waters '  ?  But  on  the  common  theory  the 
business  spoken  of  was  transacted  at  the  ports,  not  on  the  sea.  Hence 
Herz  would  read  TWil'Ct  or  rsvh'd ,  '  (practising)   seamanship.'     A  more 

TT    -  T    - 

satisfactory  and  complete  remedy  for  the  hurts  of  the  text  is  to  assume 
a  reference  to  some  neighbouring  country,  great  in  commerce.  It  then 
becomes  plausible  to  read, — 

n'!^"^^^  for  jIVJ^S,  cp.  O-//.  Bib.  on  Jon.  i.  3  ;  -)Wii  for  •'i:'!' ;  'rn"* 
for  nD^yj  (cp.  on  Q'^D^Jb';!D  ,  2  S.  xi.  i).  Q^H  either  represents  a  ditto- 
graphed  'n~l^,  or  comes  from  /.  44.     ^  before  D'^Q  is  editorial. 

43.  Read  IDV^'  with  G  J;  so  Ba.,  Kau.,  Du.  Omit  -1DN''T  (from  a 
dittogr.  1,:2T;^1),  for  metre.— 44.  v'pi!.     Read  Q'TJ  ^^-i . 

.  T-  T-        ••- 

47.  M  Qp*',  G  Kcii  earrja-fv.  Not  free  from  doubt. — Gloss  in  ?'.  30. 
D^JSn  Tin/p  ,  improbable  (see  Em:  Bib.,  '  Haven ')  ;  ^^flD  ought  not  to 
mean  '  haven,'  but  '  city.'  Herz,  acutely,  QJiSn  =lin  •  Better  Q-^jJ  5]in 
(cp.  Gen.  xlix.  13).     HH^  and  DliSH  bo//i  represent  this. 

CVII.'-'J     14.     M    n:!''!    nyi    "IliiTJ.      Vague.      Perles   {Afia/.    85) 

t:  T    T  V       ••  -J 

]^iiy\  Dm  Tii/f^ ,  '  through  scanty  offspring  and  contmuance  m  widow- 
hood.' 'More'probably  D'''?l<r^nTT  D'^TiD^D  •  n)?~)  and  p:!"'  may  quite 
well  be  corrupt  fragments  of  'nT  ;  for  pj^  cp.  IpT  (Josh.  xix.  46). 

Gloss  on  /.  14  (7/.  40).  Read  "^SyD'^:;"*  "'Tl^  HnV^.  Tin  (here 
b^  n2),  like  T^2  is  a  much-worn  form  of  'Q'vi?**  (see  on  Gen.  xxii.  21, 
I  K.  vii.  21).     Now  we  can  see  the  sense  of  the  interpolation. 


PSALMS    CVIII.    AND    CIX. —  I.  I39 


PSALM    CVIII. 

J\,  LITUKGICAI,  compound  of  Ivii.  S-12,  and  Ix,  7-14.  Observe  that  Pss.  Ivii. 
and  Ix.  were  used  in  their  Elohistic  form,  for  the  usage  of  Book  v.  of  the 
Psalter  is  not  Elohistic. 

PSALM    CIX. 

JL  RIMETERS.  The  Psalm  is  usually  condemned  on  the  ground  of  the  im- 
precations in  vv.  6-20,  which  are  more  startling  even  than  those  in  Ps.  Ixix. 
We  should  rather  perhaps  pity  the  writer  of  this  terrible  passage  for  the 
extremity  of  the  national  sufferings  which  must  have  led  to  it.  We  must  also 
take  notice,  (l)  that  one  of  tlie  worst  of  the  imprecations  in  M  {v.  yd)  is  due  to 
textual  corruption,  and  (2)  that,  however  improbable  it  may  seem  to  a 
Western  reader,  it  is  very  possible  (cp.  the  Peshitta)  that  no  individual  was 
intended,  but  the  whole  body  of  N.  Arabian  tyrants  who  treated  Israel  as 
Israel  now  hopes  that  those  tyrants  may  themselves  be  treated.  We  have 
adequate  parallels  for  this  in  Pss.  lii.  and  Iv.  Elsewhere  (OP,  64  f.)  it  has 
been  pointed  out  that  '  the  element  of  true  prayer  [in  Ps.  cix.]  begins  with 
the  appeal  to  Yahwe's  name  in  v.  21,'  and  that  '  vv.  2-5  and  26-31  have  a 
genuine  lyric  note.'  '  They,  at  least,  were  written  under  the  inspiration  of 
love.  It  follows  that  the  original  psalm  .  .  .  was  retouched  and  added  to  by 
the  author.'  It  is  enough,  however,  to  hold  the  composite  character  of  the 
psalm  without  insisting  on  unity  of  authorship.  To  understand  the  second 
stanza  of  cix.(-'  we  should  do  well  to  study  Jer.  1.,  li.  afresh.  That  prophecy, 
in  its  original  form,  was  directed  against  the  chief  N.  Arabian  kingdom,  the 
cities  of  which,  by  just  retribution,  were  to  be  destroyed  by  the  very  peoples 
over  whom  the  supreme  king  had  tyrannized  (see  li.  27  f.,  and  Cn'i.  Bib. 
ad  loc).  The  inferences  as  to  date  drawn  from  linguistic  phenomena  such  as 
Q^JSyQ  (cp.  Eccles.  v.  i),  and  mpD  'office'  (a  late  sense  in  connexion  with 
the  newly  organized  priestly  functions,  Stade,  ZA  TW,  1885,  p.  282)  in  v.  8, 
and  nhJDi  (v.  16),  will  scarcely  hold  (see  crit.  notes).  Ps.  cix.'^'  is  a  late, 
imitative  psalm  which  (see  //.  22,  25)  presupposes  the  existence  of  cix.(-  .  The 
date  of  Ps.  cix.'-')  is  at  any  rate  earlier  than  that  of  the  '  Psalms  of  Solomon ' 
(as  a  whole),  for  the  4th  of  these  psalms  contains  curses  which,  as  Biithgen 
points  out,  closely  resemble  those  in  our  psalm.  Here  again,  it  is  interesting 
to  remark,  an  individual — Alexander  Jannieus — has  been  thought  of  (Wellh., 
Pharisiier  u.  Saddttciier,  146),  but  here  again  appearances  may  be  deceptive. 
Dr.  C.  Taylor  has  pointed  out  parallels  between  Ps.  cix.  and  the  Book  of 
Job,  and  agrees  with  those  who  compare  v.  "][>  ('  Satan '  or  '  a  Satan '  ?)  with 
Job  ii.  He  also  thinks  that  in  vv.  6-15  the  curses  used  by  the  psalmist's 
enemy  are  quoted.  So  already  Kennicott  and  INIendelssohn,  and  more  recently 
Gratz  and  B.  Jacob.  Against  it  see  Kirkpatrick,  Psalms,  654.  Of  course, 
the  speaker  throughout  is  the  pious  Jewish  community.  Cp.  Smend,  pp.  132  f.  ; 
Coblenz,  pp.  152  ff.;  Cheyne,  OP,  pp.  63-65  (where  the  age  of  Nehemiah  is 
suggested  as  the  date  ;   cp.  Neh.  iv.  4f.,  xiii.  25). 

,  CIX. —  I. 

Deposited.     Of  '■Arab-e/han.     Marked.  i 

I  O  God  my  hope  !  be  not  silent, 

For  those  of  Jerahmeel  snatch  me  away  ;  2,  3 

"Ishmael  and  Cusli^  surround  me, 

'  Asshur  and.  ^  Arabia.  •*  And  Arabia  of  Ishmael. 


140  THE    PSALMS. 

Unprovoked  they  fight  against  me  ; 

Rehoboth  and  Maacath  are  at  feud  with  me,  4 

With  evil  do  they  requite  me.  5 

As  for  me,  I  am  a  sufferer  and  in  need,  22 

And  my  heart  is  in  anguish  within  me  ; 

Like  locusts  when  they  settle,  I  am  taken  away,  23 

10     I  am  gathered  like  the  swarming  locusts. 

My  legs  totter  because  of  Missur.  24 

My  flesh  falls  away  because  of  Ishmael  ; 

Yea,  I  serve  them  as  a  mark  for  insults,  25 

When  they  see  me,  they  shake  their  heads. 

Help  me,  O  Yahwe  my  God  !  26 

Deliver  me,  according  to  thy  lovingkindness  ; 
That  they  may  know  that  thy  hand  is  here,  27 

And  that  thou,  O  Yahwe  !   hast  done  it. 

They  ma}'  curse,  but  thou  v/ilt  bless  ;  28 

20     They  will  be^  put  to  shame,  but  thy  servant  will  rejoice  : 

Those  that  persecute  me  will  be  clothed  with  disgrace,         29 
And  wrap  themselves  in  their  shame  as  in  a  mantle. 

I  will  thank  Yahwe  continually  with  my  voice,  30 

And  praise  him  in  the  midst  of  many. 

For  he  stands  at  the  right  hand  of  the  needy,  31 

To  deliver  him  from  the  judges  of  Ishmael. 

Critical  Notes,      i.     M  Tl^rTD  •      Read  '»ri'?rfj^  (xxxix.  8;    cp.  on 
•  T  •    :  •  :  - 

xxii.  4,  Ixxi.  6,  Ixxvii.  11). 

2.     M    innD    'hv    nQ"lD"''3T   rt:'"1    ""S    ""S  •      The    construction    is 

tt-tt:.-  tt-' 

awkward,  and  is  only  slightly  improved  by  reading  ^^t£;"1  (Houb.,  &c.) 
and  rriJlD  (G  Tjvolxdr] ;  so  Du.).     There  is  also  too  much  material  for  a 

-  T 

line,  even  if  we  omit  ni^Sl^D'^SV  The  probability  is  that  ""S  and  innS) 
both  represent  an  original  'IDtOn,  i-c.  "^JIEJtSn  (cp.  x.  9).  ilQlQ  some- 
times represents  T'J^I^n")"',  and  that  is  the  case  here  ;  as  if  to  make  this 
doubly  sure,  """pp  is  added  ;  ■^^};  n,:3"ID  has  sprung  from  D"''?h}l2n~l''  • 
The  prefixed  "'S  is  an  editorial  patch,  ^i:?!  comes  from  "^V^i^^^  (=~nnii'N, 
the  N.  Arabian  region  called  Ashhur  or  Asshur)  ;  this  was  written  in 
error    for    D^'?N^n")'.      I' or    a    parallel,    see    on    cix.'-'',    /.    i.     Read 

-  disgraced  and. 


PSALM    CIX. — I.  141 

3.   M  •'iiaiD   Hiiiv  nan  :  "^d^  ]^tb  'r\ii  ^-)3.i-  very 

.       T  :  T  :  .  •• :    •:  'vt  :  •  •  :   • 

awkward  phraseology.  The  editor  did  his  best  with  corruptions  of 
archaic  names  of  peoples.  1121  and  ""IQl  represent  2~J2  or  D''Z11J[7 
(cp.  Ixv.  4?)  ;  ip^  ]Wb  comes  from  ^OT  ':'^i;l^^^^  (cp.  xxxi.  19  ?)  ; 
nh^ilt',  like 'ilt^';),  represents  bi^y!:i'li^'^ .  T^^<  remains  unaccounted  for ; 
the   underlying   word    is,    at    any    rate,    superfluous.      Read    probably 

5.  M  ^nnnSt  nnn.  Read  probably  j-lDyQT  ninn-].  Cp.  on 
XXXV.  II  f.,  xxxviii.  19  f.— After  ''JlJIDt:^^  M  G  add  h'^SjI  ^'jhtl-  The 
supposed  parallels  ex.  3,  cxx.  7  will  not  bear  examination.  *JJ^T  probably 
comes  from  a  dittographed  ^J1 .  H/Sn  seems  to  have  come  from  1170, 
which  should  have  stood  after  7'.  5.  Halevy,  il'^'im,  merely  a  superficial 
improvement. 

6.  M  •'by  1D''t;^V     Read'»':)y  ^r^bt^^  (Joel  iv.  4)  or  •':n,':)'?-Xri  (Hu. 

-T  .  T-  -T  :  - :-  .     :  -  :- 

alt.,  Bi.,  and  virtually  Gr).     Confirmed  by  xxxv.  12;  cp.  xxxvni.  21.     Hu. 

prefers  "^bv  H'^Ii^"'!  (xciv.  2,  23).     The  closing  words  of  7'.  5  (")JT  Jinn) 

-T  .T- 

are  merely  dittographic. 

7.  Read  ^JX'l-      ^3  ^^'^.s  necessitated  by  the  insertion  of  vv.  6-21, 

•  T  : 
when  the  psalm  was  reconstructed. 

8.  Read  '^''n'*  (Gr.,  Kau.).     Cp.  Iv.  5. 

•   T 

9.  M  7ji3 .  '  Like  the  shadow  when  it  stretches  out '  is  not  a 
probable  expression.  Note  the  ||  word,  and  read  TDnS  ;  the  same 
corruption  has  occurred  in  Job  xiv.  2.  See  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Locust.'  — M 
iniiOJ3  •  The  key  to  the  passage  is  Nah.  iii.  17  (see  Enc.  B3.,  I.e.), 
which  suggests  the  reading  inijn3  .— M  ^Jl^Sn^  (Nif.  'to  be  made  to 
go'  ?).     Clearly  the  original  must  be  Tinp'^J- 

10.  M  \m3722,  G  (^iTivax6r]v.  As  if  the  wind  had  a  garment,  out  of 
which  (Neh.  V.  13)  the  locusts  were  shaken  into  the  sea?  So  Bii.  But 
how  improbable !     "'JlJ^lJli   would   not   be   clear  enough   either.      One 

word  will  do — ^ni^lJ^J-      See  exeg.  note. 

• 
12  f.  M  l£?n3  .  But  '"2  in  Kal,  meaning  'to  be  lean,'  is  only  post- 
Biblical.  Read  probably  ^l)'^);  (vi.  8,  xxxi.  10  f.).— Dliii;^,  'through 
fasting,'  and  ]Q*,£^Q,  'through  oil'  (so  parallelism  requires,  cp.  G),  are 
clearly  wrong.  Nor  can  we  venture  to  render  ""Iti^Q  ,  '  my  skin  '  (Bii.  in 
note,  cp.  on  cii.  6).  Comparing  vi.  8/;,  read  ~n-^a:tD  and  ';)^}i^DI£^■"^D  (cp. 
on  ]Dl£^ ,  civ.  15,  cxli.  5).  Gr.'s  pDClti^D  ,  'through  amazement,'  would 
not  suit  Wyi*2  . — M  ^2lN"l  (with  Pasek).     Read  perhaps  DJT  • 

19  f.     nan  is  metrically  superfluous.— M  ^^2T>  (with  Pasek).     G  (Gr., 

T   ••  't 


142  THE    PSALMS. 

Ba.,  Kau.),  \":2p,  as  subject  of  Wy^  ■     Rather  read  ^Q':)^^  a  variant  to 

23.     M  1^<Q.     Read  TD^I  (Gr.) ;  see  on  xlvi.  2. 
:  •  T 

26.     M    it^32    ^t33iyO  •     A  weak   expression  ;    one   expects   rather 
DQH  ^JD3li^-     But  since  the  persons  intended  are  the  same  as  in  //.  2-6, 

T  T 

it  is  presumable  that  at  any  rate  MVii^  represents  an  ethnic.  The  truth 
is  that  we  have  before  us  here  a  rather  strong  instance  of  transposition. 
''li'SJ  (G  rijv  ■^vxr]"  fJ'Ov)  here,  as  sometimes  elsewhere,  represents  ^QID^ 
written  backwards,  and  ]}2V  is  one  of  the  current  distortions  of  '^H^i^tV^ 
(cp.  on  Isa.  X.  27).  The  opening  of  Ps.  cix."'  now  corresponds  with  its 
close.     Note  by  the  way  that  KaTadicoKovTcov  in  the  MSS.  of  G  should  be 

CIX. — 2. 

I       Appoint  judgment,  O  Yahvvb  !  upon  the  wicked  man,  6 

Let  an  accuser  stand  at  his  right  hand  ; 

When  he  is  judged,  let  him  come  out  guilty,  7 

And  let  his  remnant  be  counted  criminal. 

Let  his  palaces  be  [for]  Jaman,  8 

His  cities  let  Jerahmeel  take  ; 

Let  his  children  become  orphans,  9 

And  his  wife  [become]  a  widow. 

Let  his  children  be  vagabonds  in  Ishmael,  10 

10     Let  them  be  treated  with  violence  in  their  broad  places; 

Let  the  spoiler  take  by  force  all  that  is  his,  1 1 

Let  foreigners  plunder  his  wealth. 

Let  there  be  none  that  keeps  friendship  toward  him,  12 

None  that  shows  pity  to  his  orphans  ; 

Let  extinction  be  the  doom  of  his  offspring,  13 

In  one  generation  let  his  name  be  effaced. 

Let  the  guilt  of  his  father  be  mentioned,^  14 

■     And  the  sin  of  his  mother — let  it  be  not  effaced. 

Let  them  be  present  to  Yahwe  continually,  15 

20     That  He  may  extinguish  his  name  from  the  earth. 

[Because     '■'         "'"         '■■         "]  16 

He  remembered  not  to  show  brotherly  love. 
But  hunted  one  who  was  a  sufferer  and  needy. 
And  crushed  one  who  walked  blamelessl3% 

'   to  Vahwe. 


PSALM    CIX. — 2.  143 

He  loved  cursing  and  chose  it,  17 

And  took  no  pleasure  in  blessing  ; 

[Compassion]  was  far  from  him, 

And  he  sought  cursing,  and  delighted  in  it.  18 

Then  let  it  soak  into  his  entrails  like  water, 
30     And  like  oil  into  his  bones  : 

Let  it  be  to  him  as  the  garment  which  he  dons,  19 

And  as  the  girdle  which  he  ever  girds  about  him. 

Be  these  the  wages  of  my  persecutors,'  20 

Of  those  that  speak  evil  against  me. 

But  thou,  O  Yahwe  !-  deliver  me,^  21 

According  to  thy  gracious  kindness,  rescue  thou  me. 

Critical  Notes.  CIX.(-)  i.  M  ;;i:r-|  v":);;  ipHlQ.  TpDrr  to  appoint 
to  an  office  (Gen.  xxxix.  4,  Jer.  i.  10,  &:c.),  or  to  bring  about  a  plague 
(Lev,  xxvi.  16).  Hupfeld  thinks  the  appointment  of  a  '  wicked '  or 
'  unrighteous  '  man  as  judge  has  the  nature  of  a  plague.  But  in  /.  3  this 
J^'ii^l  appears  to  have  the  interests  of  justice  at  heart,  and  not  to  sym- 
pathize with  the  yii^")  when  he  judges.  Hence  Halevy  emends  ^^'ii'"lD. 
But  in  such  cases  as  this  a  mere  superficial  correction  is  useless.  The 
error  probably  lies  in  v'7i',  which  seems  to  come  from  "^yv ,  i.e.  "l^y  TVSTV. 
Yahw6  is  petitioned  to  appoint  an  examination  of  a  great  unnamed 
wicked  man's  cause.  The  wicked  man  is  the  personified  people  of  the 
N.  Arabian  oppressor.     See  introd. 

4.     M    rrJ^LDn'?    rrrin   in'pSm.     Surely   no   psalmist  could   have 
T  T  -:  -        V  :  •  T  .   : 

written  thus.  It  is  one  thing  to  declare  that  the  formal  prayers  of  wicked 
men  are  an  abomination  to  Yahwe  (Prov.  xxviii.  9),  and  consequently  that 
this  or  that  individual,  or  class  of  individuals,  being  wicked  men  and 
mere  formal  worshippers,  will  not  be  heard  (Isa.  i.  15,  Prov.  i.  28,  cp. 
Ps.  Ixvi.  19)  ;  it  is  another  to  utter  over  a  man  who,  whether  good  or 
bad,  is  in  sore  distress,  a  solemn  desire  that  his  prayer  for  mercy — this 
time,  certainly,  no  formal  prayer — may  be  ineffectual.  Nor  can  we  hold 
that  the  prayer  of  the  yt^")  is  a  petition  to  the  judge  for  leniency,  for  how 
could  an  unjust  judge  be  imagined  to  be  open  to  such  a  request.''  This 
time  it  isa  very  slight  change,  suggested  by  experience  of  the  ways  of  the 

scribes,  that  suffices.     Read  HNIOn'?  H'Tin  ijlDlbSl  •     For  the  use  of 

T  T  -  :       V  :    .  T   ..  : 

'n  J  cp.  I  K.  1. 21. 

5  f.     AI  D^JOrD  VD^'TH' .      We  should  expect  V^y   niiD'*    (cp.  on 

•  -  :         TT       :  .  TT  :  •:  . 

Iv.  24).     'D^tOyrj    here    faultily    as    an    adj.,    as    Eccles.    v.    i'   (Hu.). 

'  Jerahmeel.  "  Lord.  ^  for  thy  name's  sake. 


144  "^^^    PSALMS. 

Evidently  there  is  some  corruption,  and  the  more  so  as  v.  %b  is  equally- 
liable  to  suspicion.  The  person  spoken  of  being  either  the  personified 
people  of  Israel's  oppressors  or  the  king  of  that  people,  it  would  be 
suitable  that  the  destruction  of  the  cities  of  that  king  or  people  should  be 
referred  to.  Is  there  any  possible  correction  of  the  te.\t  which  will  give 
that  meaning  ?  There  is.  Few  words  in  the  psalms  and  prophecies  are 
more  often  corrupted  than  m;lQ"l^i  ,  '  castles.'  Q^tOi^O  may  possibly  be 
an  editor's  conjecture  on  the  basis  of  a  corruption  of  ^^'^J^^"1^<  .  To 
complete  this,  we  require  VD^  to  be  a  corruption  of  some  ethnic  to  which 
originally  ^  was  prefixed.  That  ]Q^  (]^^  or  ]0^)  was  an  early  abbrevia- 
tion of  Vj^Qnn''  appears  again  and  again  (see  e.g.  Crit.  Bib.  on  Gen.  x.  2). 
In  the  II  line  we  find  "ini^  ,  i-c.  ^)XtSV\'  •  Late  writers  find  no  difficulty 
in  putting  nearly  side  by  side  different  corrupt  forms  of  the  same  ethnic. 
— M  i/TTpB,  his  watch?  office.''  punishment?  Read  perhaps  Vni^Hp  • 
— M  "^^^<  •  '  Read  '^XQm^  •     a  common  type  of  corruption. 

8.  Insert  n;nj"l  (metre).— 9.  Omit  );^^^  (dittogr.).  For  ^bi^W) 
(scarcely  =' beg')  read  perhaps  Vi^y^^'X^^Z  •  'DV^  is  very  often  cor- 
rupted.— M  ^tifm  ,  '  and  shall  seek  .  . '  ?  G  fK^^rjdrjTcoaav  ;  hence 
Houb.,  Seeker,  Horsley,  Hu.,  Bi.,  Che.'",  Bii.,  Kau.  read  ^ILHT  ^^  '^\- 
But  the  sense  is  still  not  perfect.  Lam.  ii.  11  f.  suggests  that  the 
children  were  described  as  lying,  faint  and  overpowered,  in  the  rchoboth 
of  the  cities.     Read,  as  /.  10,  DHTlUn")!  TTTk^_^  (Jer.  iv.  13.  Hos.  x.  14). 

II.  M  TWSy  ^pJ""-  According  to  Perles  {Anal.  81)  rpj  is  a  tech- 
nical term  (cp.  Aram.  '^'\>\  '  percussit ')=' claim  possession  of  a  property 
till  a  debt  should  be  paid.'  This  needs  confirmation.  But  even  if  it 
were  so,  the  sense  does  not  suit  the  jj  line.  The  initial  J  in  TVWSl  may 
be  dittographic.  Read  HD'li^  (Judg.  ii.  14,  Isa.  xviii.  14),  and  for  'y  read 
p'l^y  ('  ace.  rei,'  as  Mai.  iii.  5). 

16  f.    M  ini^.       G  /^£'a  =  inS;    so  rightly  Houb.,  Horsley,  Du.— 

M  DQi^  ;  so  Gi^     Read  'yty^,  with  G^^,  J,  so   Horsley.— Read    V2^< 
T  :  :  •  T 

(Du.),  and  omit  mn"'"7hi  (metre). 

20  ff.  M  7nD''T,  better  than  7113^']  (G  J).  Wellh.  places  the  line 
after  v.  13,  which  seems  to  injure  the  structure  of  the  poem. — G'^^ 
wrongly  avrov. — A  line  has  fallen  out  (Bi.) ;  Tii?i<  ]_y\  followed  by  Pasek, 
may  belong  to  /.  21,  but  is  perhaps  more  probably  an  editorial  link. 

24.    M  Dni:^':'    l":^    'r\)^'21'\-      W  F,    '  But    hunted  to   death    the 

..         ;  T  ••  ••  :  •  : 

wretched  and  poor,  and  the  broken  in  heart,'  but  We.'s  critical  notes  pass 
this  over.     S   suggests  TS^T^  ;   so  Gr.,  prefixing  1J».     Neither  D/n:.:':' 


PSALM    CIX. — 2.  145 

nor  mD7  suits  the  parallelism  ;  besides  the  Pilel  form  would  be  too 
strong.  As  to  nJOJ,  the  existence  of  ^^0  is  very  doubtful  (cp.  Ges.- 
Buhl).  We  might,  indeed,  read  ^}^J  (so  at  any  rate  in  Isa.  Ixvi.  2  for 
HDJ);  G  has  Karaviwyfievov,  which  9  has  in  Prov.  xvii.  22  for  HNS^ 
(mi).  'A  2  give  TTfirXTjyfjievov,  and  'A  has  the  same  word  in  Prov.  i.e. 
Hitz.  and  Bit.  adopt  this  way  out  of  the  difficulty.  But  it  is  really  no 
way  out.  DJli;^'^  ^^'pil  J^321  is  no  parallel  to  /.  23.  Read  probably 
'"^l^rh  ib'n  ^<^T^.  For  J^DI,  cf.  xciv.  5,  Prov.  xxii.  22  (of  judicial 
oppression,  as  probably  here);   and  for  "7,28.  xv.  11. 

25-32.  If  the  text  is  right  as  it  stands,  it  must  be  in  disorder ;  any 
of  the  current  translations  will  make  this  clear.  Street  (1790)  and  Bi. 
(1882)  therefore  attempt  some  transposition,  but  without  any  quite  satis- 
factory result.  An  inspection  of  the  text  leads  us  to  suspect  corruption. 
The  double  statement  respecting  the  penetrating  character  of  the  spirit 
of  cursing,  and  the  double  use  of  the  figure  of  the  garment,  can  hardly 
be  original.  Nor  will  the  first  of  the  two  stanzas  into  which  the  whole 
passage  on  cursing  should  evidently  fall  be  symmetrical,  unless  we  sup- 
pose that  the  subject  of  pn"im  in  ^'.  17  (/.  27)  has  fallen  out  of  the  text. 
But  all  that  I  say  on  behalf  of  the  following  restoration  is  that  the 
changes  proposed  are  possible,  and  that  a  quite  satisfactory  sense  is 
produced. 

TV-::.-       T  T ' :         ••  v:v- 
T  T  :   •       '  ••  T  : 

T  V  :  :  v-        T  T ' :  :  •  - 

That  ^^Un  and  ini',  ^2b  and  f\l,  "ilDD  and  ni:2n[^1],  might 
be  confounded,  is  evident.  ITDS, 'as  his  robe,'  is,  at  any  rate,  very 
improbable,  unless  indeed  we  suppose  that  the  imprecation  is  directed 
against  a  priest. 

32.  M  HTQ  •  That  this  is  an  Egyptian  loan-word  (see  BDB)  is  most 
improbable.  In  Isa.  xxiii.  10  (riTQ)  and  Job  xii.  21  (nV/D)  the  text  is 
corrupt.  Like  X\TV2  in  cvii.  30,  niD  and  n^?D,  wherever  they  occur, 
are  almost  certainly  corruptions  of  ^J^Dnn*.  In  the  present  case  'TW 
may  have  been  originally  a  marginal  gloss  on  ''JJOli'  ("'•  20).  It  seems  to 
have  supplanted  li;ir7,  which  G  appears  to  have  read  in  the  Hebrew  text 

(oMTfi  ^u>vr]). 

33.  Gr,  reads  r^^r\  for  Jl^yS  ;  Jl  absorbed  by  JINT.  But  if  this 
were  right  something  more  would  have  been  said  about  the  prayer  not 
entering  the  presence  of  God.     Cp.  Isa.  Iviii.  \b  ;   Prov.  xxvi.  2, 

35  f.   Omit  >3ir<  and  yyu  ];?d':'.— M  ^ntiCTVD^-     Read  ^y^J^tT^  ; 
cp.  on  xxii.  31. — M  2^tD~'3-     Read  21ID3  (Hitz.,  Gr.);  see  on  Ixix.  17. 
II.  L 


146  THE    PSALMS. 

CIX.i''     9  f .    The 'settling' of  the  introd.    ami    crit.    notes).  -2.    Ai    his 

locusts  is  again  referred  10  in  Nah.  iii.  rii^ht  hand.  Cp.   Zech.   iii.    i. — 4.   See 

17;    their    'removal'   possibly   in    Isa.  crit.    note. — 7-10.   A  man's  family  is 

xxxiii.  4«.     They  were,  of  course,  an  regarded  as  part  of  himself  (cp.  Ex. 

article  of  diet  to  the  poorer  classes  in  xx.    5).  — 17.    lie    mentioned,    i.e.    to 

the  East. — 11  f.  Cp.  vi.  8,  cii.  6. — 14.  Vahwc     by    heavenly     remembrancers 

Cp.  xxii.  8,  Job  xvi.  4,  Isa.  xxxvii.  22.  (Isa.  Ixii.  6),    or   by    'men   of  God' 

(i  K.  xvii.  18). — 29.  Like  water.  Cp. 

„,..  ,,>           ,„M-          .  r     •  Num.  v.  22  ff.  — 33.    Note   the  plural, 

Cl.\.(-^     I.   Ji^n  .       A  faction  or  ,ny persecutors,  ami  the  probable  gloss, 

large  body  of  men  is  personified  (see  '  Jerahmeel '  (see  crit.  note). 


PSALM    ex. 

XENTAMETEKS.  Two  questions  have  to  be  critically  answered,  (i)  What  was 
the  sense  attributed  to  this  psalm  by  the  redactor  who  brought  it  into  its  final 
shape?  and  (2)  what  was  the  original  form  of  the  psalm,  and  what  did  the 
original  writer  mean  by  the  psalm?  (i)  It  has  been  shown  elsewhere  {OP, 
pp.  20-29)  that,  if  the  received  text  is  approximately  correct,  no  other  Jewish  prince 
but  Simon  the  Maccabee  can  be  the  person  addressed.  This  view  is  also  held  by 
Duhm,  Bickell,  G.  Margoliouth,  and  R.  H.  Charles,  and  independently  both 
Bickell  and  G.  Margoliouth  have  hit  upon  the  idea  that  the  initial  letters  of  vv. 
1-4  form  an  acrostic  conveying  the  name  "J/'itDli'  {Skiin^on),  i.e.  as  is  supposed, 
Simon  the  Maccabee.  In  the  form  given  to  this  theory  by  Bickell  {Acade/ny, 
April  9,  1892)  it  has  been  adopted  by  Duhm  in  his  Commentary  and  Charles 
in  the  Expositor  for  April,  1902,  p.  252.  For  G.  Margoliouth's  theory  see 
Acadony,  Feb.  20,  1892  (and  elsewhere),  and  compare  Caster's  reply,  Acad., 
March  5,  1892.     AV  the  same  time  Bickell  put  forward  a  similar  theory  for  Ps.  ii., 

where  he  found  {7'v.  1-4)  an  acrostic  representing  ^^^7  (/'  Yannai, '  of  JannKus'). 
Such  acrostics,  however,  ought  to  indicate  the  author  ol  a  poem,  not  a  personage 
referred  to  in  it,  and  for  this  and  other  reasons  the  acrostic  theory  has  been 
rejected  by  Konig,  J.  K.  Zenner  {Zt.  f.  kath.  ThcoL,  1900,  pp.  578-584), 
Grimme  {Psalm. -Prob.,  103),  and  C.  H.  H.  Wright.  Nevertheless,  the  theory 
that  the  psalm  refers  to  Simon  is  extremely  plausible,  as  long  as  we  adhere  to  the 
traditional  text.  It  may  be  urged  that  the  poet  implies  that  his  hero  is  about  to 
assume  sovereign  power,  and  that  this  exactly  corresponds  to  the  historical 
position  of  Simon,  who  did  not,  it  is  true,  claim  the  title  of  king,  but  lacked 
nothing  of  the  dignity  but  the  name,  and  who  by  the  conquest  of  the  Acra  and  the 
expulsion  of  its  garrison  (May,  142),  completed  the  liberation  of  Jerusalem.  It 
may  also  be  held  that,  as  a  kmg-priest,  .Simon  desired  to  have  his  name  coupled 
with  that  of  the  ideal  priest-king  Melchizedek,  and  tliat,  even  if  only  by  an 
illusion,  a  psalmist  who  traced  the  hand  of  God  in  Simon's  successes  might  well 
claim  a  prophetic  character  for  his  impassioned  addresses  to  his  hero.  That  in 
later  times  the  psalm  (in  the  form  in  which  we  now  have  it)  was  regarded  as 
Messianic  (see  e.g.  Ber.  Rabba,  par.  85,  on  Gen.  xxxviii.  18),  can  easily  be 
understood;  cp.  Mark  xii.  35-37  and  parallels,'  Acts  ii.  34  f.,  Heb.  i.  13. 
Nor  is  it  impossible  that  the  redactor,  if  an  adherent  of  the  Maccabees,  may  have 
hoped  that  their  family  would  furnish  to  Israel  a  line  of  Messianic  princes,  whose 
victories  would  become  more  and  more  splendid,  and  more  and  more  worthy 
to  be  regarded  as  Messianic.  To  these  theories  we  will  not  deny  plausibility. 
And  yet  there  is  surely  nothing  in  Ps.  ex.,  as  the  text  stands,  which  need  make  us 
I  hesitate  to  resign  a  belief  in  its  Messianic  import,  should  textual  criticism  require 

'  On  the  bearing  of  modern  criticism  on  these  passages,  see  Gore,  Bampton 
J.fiturcs,\s.  198;  Sanday,  Bainp.  Z<f</.,pp.  419  f.  ;  Cheyne,  Bamp.  Led.  {Origin 
of  Psalter),  pp.  34  f.,  and  especially  Aids  to  Criticism,  pp.  391  ff.,  and  Christian 
Use  of  the  Psalms,  pp.  231  ff. 


PSALM    ex. 


147 


this,  and  we  even  find  a  Jewisli  opinion,  meniioned  by  Ilm  Ezra  and  adopted  by 
Rashi,  that  the  hero  of  the  psahn  is  Abram,  whose  victory  over  the  allied  kings, 
and  honourable  reception  by  Melchizedek  are  recorded  in  Gen.  xiv. 

(2)  Does  textual  criticism  oppose  the  above-mentioned  Maccabcean  theory  ? 
As  practised  by  Bickell  and  Duhm,  it  does  not.  Bickell,  however  {Acad.,  I.e.),  is 
too  arbitrary,  and  supplies  loo  much,  to  be  a  safe  guide,  while  Duhm  is  highly 
superficial  in  his  criticism  of  vv.  I-4,  and  with  regard  to  vv.  5-7  confesses  that  he 
'  can  make  nothing  of  them,'  and  has  derived  not  the  least  help  from  other 
expositors.  Clearly  there  is  a  case  for  a  more  determined  effort  to  solve  the 
textual  problems.  Such  an  effort  has  been  made,  and  the  result  (which  is 
scarcely  doubtful)  is  that  the  original  psalm  was  a  ]:>roi5hecy  of  the  conquest  by 
Israel  of  the  N.  Arabian  border-land.  The  nearest  parallels  are  Pss.  ii. ,  Ixviii., 
because  here  too  we  find  a  divine  oracle  jirofessedly  quoted.  If  the  text  of  Ps.  Ix. 
8«  were  correct,  this  psalm  would  be  as  close  a  parallel,  but  even  if  it  is  not,  as 
an  expression  of  Israel's  confident  expectation  of  tlie  overthrow  of  N.  Arabia,  we 
may  refer  to  it  here.  Ps.  xviii.  is  also  among  the  chief  psalms  with  which  Ps.  ex. 
may  be  grouped.  Among  prophetic  parallels,  the  closing  verses  (19-21)  of 
Obadiah  may  especially  be  mentioned  (see  Enc.  Bib.,  col.  3458,  and  Crit.  Bib.). 
It  is  worth  while  to  notice  that  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  Ps.  ex.  we 
have  a  composite  psalm  (cxviii.),  which  includes  the  parallel  prophecy  of  the 
subversion  of  N.  Arabia  in  Ps.  Ix.  The  surest  restorations  in  the  text  here 
translated  are  those  which  yield  N.  Arabian  names.  The  new  text  of  v.  ^b  is 
very  probable  ;  somewhat  less  so  that  of  the  closing  words  of  v.  3.  '  To  his 
servant '  in  the  opening  clause  is  also  open  to  some  doubt.  We  might  conceivably 
read  '  to  Abram,'  and  view  the  psalm  as  a  dramatically  conceived  prophecy  of  the 
successes  of  Abram  against  the  kings  ((jen.  xiv.),  successes  which  might  be 
regarded  as  typical  of  Israel's  future  victories  at  the  '  end  of  the  days.'  Cp.  Eitc. 
Bib.,  '  Psalms,  Book  of,'  §  29.  The  latest  text-critical  study  is  by  S.  Minocchi, 
Revue  Biblique,  1903,  pp.  203  i^. 

Of  "  Arab-etha)i :   marked.  I 

I     Yahwe's  oracle  to  his  servant  :  |  I  will  break  Jerahmeel, 
Until  I  make  thine  enemies  |  thy  footstool. 

Thy  strong  sceptre  will  Yahwe  |  stretch  out  from  Zion  ;  2 

Have  dominion         ••'         ■'■  \  in  the  midst  of  thine  enemies. 

Thou  shalt  conquer  in  the  day  of  Maacath^  j  on  the 
mountains  of  Kadesh  ;  3 

From  Jerahmeel  and  from  Ashhur  [  [thou  shalt  bring  thy 
captives  ?]. 

Yahwe  swears  [to  his  servant],  |  and  will  not  repent,  4 

'  I  establish  thee  for  ever  [  because  of  my  covenant  of 
lovingkindness.' 

The  Lord  will  shatter  Jerahmeel  |  in  his  day  of  wrath,  5 

10  He  will  judge  mighty  kings  |  because  of  their  pride.  da 

[The  Lord]  will  shatter  Ashhur  |  on  the  land  of  the 
Arabians  ;  63 

Li  the  valley  of  Hadrach  he  will  destroy  [  Jerahmeel  and 
Ashhur. 

'  Jerahmeel. 


148  THE    PSALMS. 

I.    To    his    servant,    i.e.     Israel  exact  parallel  is  the  phrase   'the   day 

(cxxxvi.    22,    cp.   Jer.    xxx.    10,   xlvi.  of  Midian,'  Isa.  ix.  3. — On  the  moun- 

27  f.,    Ezek.    xxxvii.    25).     In    ii.    7  /anw  <7//v(?</i'j7^,  or  perhaps,  'of  Cush.' 

Israel  is  called  Vahue's  son,  but    the  The  idea  is  that  the  Israelites  have  not 

diflerence  between  a   favouied   servant  onl}-  expelled  the  N.  Arabian  tyrants, 

who   understands   his   lord's    purposes  but  invaded  their  land.     Or,  if  we  read 

and  a  son  is   not  great.     The  psalmist  '  on  the  holy  mountains  '  (as  Ixxxvii.  I ), 

places   himself  in   imagination   in    the  the    neighbouring;    peoples     have     as- 

'  end  of  the  days,'  when  Yahwe's  son  sembled  to  lay  siege  to  Jerusalem  (cp. 

or   favoured    servant   will   receive    the  Zech.   xiv.    2). — 6.     Cp.    cvii.    3,    Isa. 

fulfilment  of  the  promises  in  2  Sam.  vii.  xi.  11. 
(cp.  Ixxxix.  20  ft".). — Breakjerahiueel. 

Similarly  vv.  5,  6.     Cp.  ii.  9,  xviii.  30,  7  f.  The  oath  is  immutable  ;  otherr 

39,  Ix.  8,   Ixviii.  22,  Isa.  xiv.  25  (As-  wise   there  would   be  no  security  that 

shur  probably  =  Jerahmeel),  Hab.  iii.  Israel's  newly-established  empire   will 

13.  be  eternal.     Cp.  Ixxxix.  5,  30,  36-38, 

2  S.  vii.  12. — Jl^l^,  as  xiv.   5.     See 

5-  The    day    of   Maacath    {i.e.  crit.  notes. — 12.  Hadrack.      See  Em. 

Jerahmeel  or  Cusham,  cp.  Ix.  S).     An  Bib.,  s.v. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  M  ''J^N/)  'to  my  lord,'  a  unique  expression  in 
the  Psalms.  Read  probably  1121^7  (see  introd.);  2  and  2,  J"  and  J^  con- 
founded.—  M  ^J^;2v  "y^.  From  a  conservative  point  of  view  this  is 
inconsistent  with  v.  5.  Apart  from  this,  it  is  not  natural  to  say,  'Sit  at 
my  right  hand,  till  I  prostrate  thy  foes.'  Read  ':?J<;2m"'  liuL'^}  (1  in 
'li'M  became  7).  "J^i^^  is  a  well-known  popular  form  of  7'^{!t3^"^^.  Cp. 
/.  9. 

5.  M  TJQy.  Probably  from  HD^'D  (cp.  on  pay,  Ix-  S).  This  is  a 
variant  to  "JTH  in  same  verse,  and  since  Tf,  as  in  Ezek.  xxvii.  11  (M 
Tf'^^n),  comes  from  'rm^,  i.e.  t'Ni^ni*,  and  'm*  occurs,  under  another 
disguise,  in  /.  6,  we  may  give  it  the  preference. — j"li"TJ, 'liberality '.'' 
'zeal'?  An  "emphatic  predicate'?  Surely  not.  G, /lern  o-oC  ap;^?;,  whence 
Duhm,  nil^  ^py,  '  mit  Dir  ist  Hoheit'  (?).  Read,  perhaps,  IBJ^I.— 
M  Tj^n  ;  see  above.— M  mnil.  Read  nin^  (2  J,  many  MSS.  and 
edd.,  also  Hare.  Houb..  01.,  Hu..  Gr.,  Bi.— AI  ^^y^.  Rather  l^'ip  or 
l£;i3  (see  exeg.  n.). 

6.  M  nrtti'D  Dm:^.  The  ordinary  explanation  is  very  far-fetched, 
and  Isa.  xiv.  12  is  no  true  parallel.  The  versions  give  no  help  at  all. 
But  the  remedy  is  clear.     Qm  .  like  QpH  represents  'm^  ;   irT'il*    (as  in 

Isa.  i.c)  comes  from  -nnt:'i<.   Read  'l:•^i:2^  '?N;2m'':D  •— M  "7^  ?y'p 

TjrilT  (note  that  7tO  is  not  recognized  by  G).  It  would  be  convenient 
to  make  /TT*?*  mean  "young  warriors'  (so  Ol.,  Del..  <S:c.).  But  the  word 
JITTT  is  rare,  and  the  assumed  meaning  unsupported.  G  S  read 
^^nT*?^  (cp.  M,  ii.  7),  which  Herder  admits,  rendering, — 

Vom  Schloss  der  Morgenriithe,  wie  den  Thau, 

Hab'  ich  dich  niir  erzeugt  ; 


PSALM     ex.  149 

and  so  Houbigant,  Kennicott,  Kaulen/  N.  Peters,  and  Minocchi.  This, 
however,  is  very  unnatural,  while  the  conjectures  of  Gratz  and  Bickell 
(\n  Acad.,  I.e.)  are  sadly  arbitrary.  It  is  probable  that  "^JD  ]?  merely 
represents  fragments  of  a  dittograph  of  the  word  underlying  '"T'7^  This 
word  may  possibly  be  "^JlvJI,  but  is  more  probably  T'Ki'^m"'  (cp.  on  710, 
^xxxiii.  3).  [Haupt,  however,  in  Joluis  Hopkins  Uni'K  Circular.,  July> 
1894,  takes  Dni!t3  '"^nd  "inii'^S  to  be  two  coordinated  participles  from 
Dm  '  to  love,'  and  "^TTiJ  '  to  seek  zealously.'] 

7.  Insert  iiio?'?  (metre).— M  "^sSo  ^-i-im"'?!?  ihSyh  ^^b"^^)^^ 

:-:  •:-       -t:-       -       r       :       ••  r  - 

pi'ji.    See  introd.    Objections:  (i)  The  line  is  unmetrical;  Duhm  boldly 

excises  pl^"''^/!^,  without  any  plausible  reason.  (2)  "*J1"13."T~7^  is 
intolerably  prosaic.  We  have  to  seek  for  an  underlying  text  which,  after 
becoming  corrupt,  could  be  so  manipulated  as  to  produce  the  traditional 

text.    Such  a  text  is— ^pn  nn3~b;i?  D':'i;^>  ^'/i:on.    For  r^na, 

see  on  IQI,  xlv.  5.    07!3  represents  '7^}!t3^T,  a  correction  of  "TTD''~7i< 

T  T  ' 

{?/.  5)  which  intruded  from  the  margin.  p"T;^  is  miswritten  for  '^DT^  (see 
on  cxliv.  2)  ;  the  suffix  ^  was  probably  indicated  by  a  sign  of  abbrevia- 
tion. 

9.  Read  'HT  ^m'  'J1^5  ;  "^y  is  redactional.  For -IJ':3''  =  ':'i^DnT, 
cp-  ""TD"^  5  I  S.  ix.  4  ;  where  G  (cod,  B)  has  uiKet/x. 

10.  Read,  probably,  ani33   WDb'Z   ri"*  ('D  from  v.  5).— M  i^bt2 

nV"!^.     Loeb  {La  Hit.  des  pauvrcs,  p.  109),  ^^^<3   '!D-       Rather  y^'dl 

DJniNil;  cp.  xxxi.  19,  xxxvi.  12,  Ixxiii.  6. 
TT-:- 

11.  Again  read  yn^V  For  t'^A"^  read  "nt^rNt  (=~nnii^S).  For  n:!"] 
read  ^^^7  (so  D^n  sometimes  for  D''^"iy)- 

12.  Read  probably,  "[")"Tn  ?nj2  (see  Crit.  Bib.  on  Zech.  ix.  i) ; 
T\iW  should  be  /TTTi'V  — p"':';?  and  D'^T'  both  represent  ':'^<;2^1■' ; 
li;j^n  should  be  "1TZW.  Compare  the  result  produced  by  criticism  in 
ii.  9  and  Ixviii.  22-24. 


'  Kaulen  {Katholik,  1865,  ii.,  129-174)  holds  the  text  underlyinij  Ci  to  be 
the  original  one,  viz.  '^JRl^^  ''D'^'?  ^TT^J^  '^ll9  "'']1l'^  ^T^^  ^'?^* 
In  Theol.  Quartahchrift,  Ixxx.  (1898),  pp.  615  ft".  N.  Peters  considers  that  S 
[iresupposes  just  the  same  Hebrew  text,  except  that  the  suffix  of  7^n  is  wanting  ; 
N'7l3  1*^  >  he  thinks,  is  an  intrusive  gloss  on  the  sufiix  in  ^'JTTT-  According 
to  him,  M  is  based  on  this,  gloss;  SviO  ('hoy,'  'youth')  being  taken  as 
=  ':)I3  ,  '  dew.' 


150  THE    PSALMS. 

PSALM    CXI. 

1  ss.  CXI.  and  cxii.  ciie  twin  psalms.  Both  are  in  trimeters,  both  are  arranged 
alphabetically,  perhaps  in  mder  to  be  learned  by  heart.  I's.  cxii.  is  a  '  sacred 
parody'  (I  lengslenberg)  of  Ps.  cxi.  ;  what  is  said  in  the  one  of  God  is  applied  in 
the  other  to  the  pious.  Probably  enough  they  are  by  the  same  author,  who  knew 
all  the  ordinary  commonplaces  of  the  psalmists  and  wise  men  of  Israel.  Ps.  cxii. 
(and  originally  Ps.  cxi.  ?)  has,  in  G,  the  heading  ti]s  iTriarpo<f>ris  'Ayyaiov  na] 
Zj-xo-pi-ov. 

Of  t/ie  Jenihineelites.  I 

I  I  will  give  thanks  to  Yahue  with  my  whole  heart, 

In  the  company  and  assembl}-  of  the  upright. 

Great  are  the  works  of  Yah  we,  2 

To  be  studied  by  all  that  delight  in  them. 

Glorious  and  magnificent  is  his  doing,  3 

And  his  righteousness  abides  for  ever. 

A  memorial  has  he  made  for  his  wonders  ;  4 

Full  of  pit}',  compassionate  is  Yahwe. 

Adornment  has  he  given  to  those  that  fear  him,  5 

10       Of  his  covenant  he  is  ever  mindful. 

The  might  of  his  works  he  has  shown  to  his  people,  b 

In  giving  them  the  nations  for  a  possession. 

The  works  of  his  hands  are  faithfulness,  7 

All  his  behests  are  sure, 

Remaining  unshaken  for  ever  and  ever,  8 

Wrought  in  faithfulness  and  uprightness. 

He  has  sent  deliverance  to  his  people,  9 

He  has  ordained  his  covenant  for  ever. 

Holy  and  to  be  feared  is  his  name, 
20       The  fear  of  Yahwe  is  the  best  part  of  wisdom,  10 

A  good  discernment  have  all  that  practice  it. 
His  praise  abides  eternally. 

I.     The  speaker  is,  of  course,  not  xii.    14).     The  expression  is   peculiar, 

the  community,  but  every  religious  and  owing  to  the  alphabetic  arrangement, 
patriotic  Israelite. 

3.  His  rlghteonsness.  Cp.  ^  I7-  Deliverance  ?.^.  that  of 
cxii.  3,  where  man's  righteousness  is  ^he  L.xodus,  since  the  legislation  tol- 
credited  with  the  same  permanence.  lows.  — 19.  hJm^T  ti'llp  ;  cp.  xcix.  3. 

4.  See    the    singular    rendering  in  —20.  n*23ri  jl"'ti•^i'^  .      Similar  say- 
G  ;  such  a  plain  writer  as  the  psaln.ist  ;,    ,  ,,,,.  commonplaces  of  the  sages  cf 
would  hardly  have  expressed  himself  in  ; 
that  way.  Israel  (cp.    I'rov.   i.  7,  ix.   10  [riTrTD 

7.  A  memorial,  viz.  a  constant  'H],  and  cp.  Job  xxviii.  28,  Ecclus. 
tradition  (cp.  Ixxviii.  3),  confirmed  by  i.  20.  '  Cp.  Jacob,  ZATli',  1898, 
observances    like    tiie     J'assover    (Ex.       p.  293. 


PSALM    CXII.  151 

Crtfical  A'o/es.  9.  M  ?|"ip  rendered  'good'  (Prov.  xxxi.  15,  Mai. 
iii.  10,  Job  xxiv.  5  ;  cp.  ^■'IlDiI,  Prov.  xxx.  8).  The  sense,  however,  is 
not  very  good  ;  the  ||  hne  suggests  something  better  than  '  good.'  Most 
explain  this  weak  word  as  due  to  the  exigences  of  the  acrostic.  But 
should  we  not  read  JllJ^StO,  a  deliberate  distortion  of  j~1~IJOj~I  for  the 
sake  of  the  alphabet  ?     Cp.  Isa.  Iv.  5,  Ix.  9. 

13.  Omit  LDS'i'aT  (metre).  So  Sievers.  — 16.  M  "^t^ .  Better  •^t'' 
(xxv.  21).     So  G  J  S  T,  Gr.,  Bii.,  Du. 

20  f.    Read  ^''"J■|^^■|'  (metre).— Read  H-'XT  (*^'  J  -'')• 


PSALM   CXII. 

Of  the  Jerahmeelites.  I 

I         Happy  the  man  that  fears  Yahwe, 

That  delights  continually  in  his  commandments  ! 

Mighty  in  the  land  +is+^  his  offspring,  2 

The  race  of  the  upright  is  blessed. 

Wealth  and  riches  are  in  his  house,  3 

And  his  righteousness  abides  for  ever. 

[His]  hght  gleams  in  the  darkness,  4 

To  tlie  upright  full  of  pity  and  compassion. ■- 
Well  is  it  with  him  that  shows  pity  and  lends,  5 

10       He  will  defend  his  ways  in  the  judgment. 

For  the  righteous  can  never  be  moved,  6 

Everlastingly  shall  he  be  remembered. 

He  fears  no  evil  tidings,  7 

Stedfast  is  his  heart-'  in  Yahwe. 

Unshaken  is  his  courage,  he  fears  not,  8 

Until  he  looks  +in  triumph+  on  his  foes. 

He  has  scattered — he  has  given  to  the  poor,  9 

His  righteousness  abides  for  ever. 

His  horn  will  be  exalted  gloriously  ; 
10       The  wicked  will  see  it  and  be  grieved  ;  10 

He  will  gnash  with  his  teeth  and  melt  away, 
The  expectation  of  the  wicked  shall  perish. 

'  will  be.  -  and  riehteous.  •*  trustinsr. 


152  THE    PSALMS. 

2.  Continually.  This  is  no  of  pity  and  compassion  is  the  righteous, ' 
conventionality,    as   cxix.    4,    44,    117,       taking  this  to  give  the  reason  of  the 

Prov.  vi.  21,  sufficiently  show.     V^H ,       P',""^'^^  f  'J'g^l-'  ,^"^  ^1?^  "L^^^""  '.^ 
'  '  ••  T  adequately  given  in  /.  9.     So  then  it  is 

as  cxi.  2.  best   to   explain    'light'  as  a    title   of 

3.  IWlghty.  1133,  however,  like  Yahwe  ;  cp.  Isa.  Ix.  21,  '  Yahwe  .  .  . 
,  ^  •  .  an  everlasting  light.'  Line  10  will  then 
T'Tf  'J  (Ruth  ii.  I,  &c.,  cp.  Job  xxi.  7)  describe  the  divine  character  (cp.  cxi. 
m'ay  mean  ' rich.'-4.  D'-^W^  as  cxi.  i .  4).     See  crit.  note. 

Sf.    Corresponds  to  cxi.  3.     Here,  9  f-     Cp.  xxxvii.  21.     The  'judg- 

,  _-._.»  ^i.-         1         ment '    (/.    10)    is  the    Messianic    one 

however,  Hplif  means  something  ob-       (j    -.) 

jective    (so   in   /.    18),    viz.    merit,   as 

Ezek.  xviii.  20  (Ba.,  cp.  T,  nTllDO-  H-      Cp.  Isa.  xxvi.  3  (?).      IID^  ; 

cp.  on  li.  12/''.— 19.    I/is  horn.     See  on 

7  f.     The  promise   in   /.    7    is  like  Ixxv.  5. 
that  in   Isa.  Iviii.  8,    lo,  which  is  the 

special  reward  of  works  of  compassion.  22.     l^i^PI  ■      See   on   i.   6,    and 

We   might,   therefore,    be   inclined    to  ^^^^^  ^j^^  correspondence  of  Pss.  i.  and 

omit  1  before  p"'^2i  ,  and  render  'full  cxii.  in  the  first  and  last  clauses. 

Critical  Notes.  1.  For  "TSQ  I'ead  l^QJ^  (as  xlvi.  2,  cxix.  4). — 3.  Omit 
either  \^^<3  or  n^H''  (metre).     Similarly  Sievers. 

7  f.  Gratz,  pn^i":)  (cp.  S);  Duhm,  p>lJJ  (without  1).  But  it  has  been 
overlooked  (save  by  Sievers)  that  the  material  in  v.  4a  is  too  much  for 
a  trimeter.  Sievers  would  omit  "^li^H^,  but  the  ||  passage,  Isa.  Iviii.  8, 
rather  suggests  reading  TllK  and  omitting  D^^ti^v-  This  course,  how- 
ever, is  not  so  critical  as  beginning  /.  8  with  D^lti' v  and  omitting  pHiiT  , 
as  an  insertion  which  was  required  after  TT1>}  had  become  '^^^<,  and 
consequently  'U^^7  had  been  drawn  to  /.  7. 

10  f.  ForV")21  b^by  read  TDIl  HO'*  (cp.  Job  xiii.  15).  To  give 
73*73^  the  sense  of  HOV  is  inadmissible.  H  and  7  must  have  been  con- 
founded.— Transfer  p*'!^  from  t'.  6/'  to  v.  6a  (metre).     So  Sievers. 

14.  Omit  nJ03  as  a  gloss  on  p^J  (Sievers). 

22.  For  JTlJ^il  read  Jl^pl^  (ix-  19),  Ol.,  Hupf.,  Duhm.  The  opposite 
error  occurs  in  Job  vi.  8. 

PSALM    CXIII. 

1  RIMETERS.  Pss.  cxiii.-cxviii.  form  the  so-called  '  Hallel '  (see  £/ic-.  Bid.,  s.v., 
and  cp.  Griitz,  iMGlVJ,  1879,  pp.  203  f.,  241  f.  ;  Biichler,  ZATPV,  1900,  pp. 
131  ff.).  Of  this  group  of  psalms,  cxiii.  and  cxiv.  form  the  introduction,  the 
former  describing  the  condescension  of  Yahwe,  the  latter  the  wonders  of  the  early 
history.  Ps.  cxv.-cxviii.  have  been  held  (cp.  OP,  pp.  16-19)  to  reflect  the 
feelings  and  historical  circumstances  of  the  Maccabaan  period ;  this,  unfor- 
tunately, cannot  be  endorsed  from  our  new  critical  jwint  of  view.     Probably  the 

name  '  Misrite  Hallel'  (Hi^lUQ  ^b^':>r\  =  ^'\'^t2r\  b^Tt)  is,  however,  un- 
designedly, a  true  statement  of  the  origin  of  the  Hallel.  Tiie  group  of  psalms  so 
called  appears  lo  have  been  made  after  some  event  which,  though  not  decisive, 
confirmed  the  Jews  in  their  anticipation  of  a  final  and  complete  deliverance  from  N. 
Arabian  oppression  at  the  apprcaching  close  of  the  ))resent  stage  of  human  history. 


PSALMS    CXIII.,    CXIV.  153 

Of  the  Jerahmeelites.  i 

I  Praise,  O  ye  servants  of  Yahvve ! 

Praise  the  name  of  Yahwe. 

Blessed  be  the  name  of  Yahwe  2 

From  henceforth  and  for  ever. 

From  the  rising  of  the  sun  to  its  going  down  3 

4.Be+  Yahwe's  name  praised  ! 

High  is  Yahwe  above  all  nations,  4 

His  glory  is  above  the  heavens. 

Who  is  like  Yahwe  our  God,  5 

10  That  is  enthroned  +so+  high, 

That  sees  +so+  low  down,  6 

In  heaven  and  on  earth  ? 

That  raises  the  helpless  out  of  the  dust,  7 

And  out  of  the  ashmound  lifts  the  needy, 

To  make  him  sit  with  princes,  8 

Even  with  the  princes  of  the  peoples  ; 

That  gives  a  seat  to  the  barren  housewife,  9 

That  makes  the  children's  mother  joyful. 

1-6.     The  psalmist  appears  to  pro-  /.    11.  — 13-15.      A  quotation  from  i  S. 

vide  for  the  admission    of  proselytes;  ii.  8.     'Ashmound,'  see  on   Ixviii.   14. 

Israel  is  becoming  a  religious  associa-  The  language  is  idealistic.     At  most  a 

tion.     So  cxxxv.   i,  cp.  v.  20;  so  too  dim  foregleam  of  the  fulfilment  of  i  S. 

Isa.  Ivi.  8.     Lines   5,  6  remind  us  of  ii.  8  can  have  been  enjoyed,  and  it  is 

Mai.  i.  II. —  9-12.  Cp.  cxxxviii.  6,  Isa.  not  strictly  necessary  to  suppose  even 

Ivii.  15.     In  /.  12,  '  in  heaven  '  belongs  this  (cp.   Stade,  Akad.  Redett.,  p.  56). 

properly   to   /.    10,  and  'on  earth'  to  See  crit.  note. 

Critical  Notes.  15.  Read  ^^''li^in'?  with  Griitz,  Nowack,  Duhm. 
G  Tov  Ka6i(Tai  avTov. — 16.  M  i^JJ?.  Since  the  'helpless'  or  the  'needy'  is 
the  Jewish  people,  read  probably  D^Qy,  and  note  that  '  princes  of 
peoples'  still  exist  in  the  ideal  or  Messianic  age.  Cp.  xlvii.  10  (?),  ii.  2.— 
18.  With  Duhm,  read  riD'I!  (article  in  D"'Jin). 


PSALM    CXIV. 

0/  tJic  Jerahmeelites.  cxiii.,  end. 

When  Israel  went  forth  from  Misrim,  1 

Jacob's  house  from  the  folk  of  Jerahmeel, 
Judah  became  his  sanctuary,  2 

Israel  his  dominion. 


154  THE    PSALMS. 

The  sea  saw  it,  and  fled,  3 

The  stream  turned  backward. 

The  mountains  skipped  Hke  rams,  4 

The  hills  like  voung  sheep. 

What  ails  thee,  O  thou  sea  !  that  thou  fleest  ?  5 

10  Thou  stream,  that  thou  turnest  backward  ? 

Ye  mountains,  that  ye  skip  like  rams  ?  6 

Ye  hills,  like  young  sheep  ? 

Be  in  anguish,  thou  earth  !  at  the  Lord's  presence,  7 

At  the  presence  of  the  God  of  Jacob, 
Who  turns  the  rock  into  a  pool  of  water,  8 

Flint  into  gushing  fountains. 

I.    nxisrlm  —  Jeratameel.      Cp.  Arabian  border-land,  even  if  that  'sea' 

the  parallelism  in  Ixxviii.  51,  cv.  23,  27,  could   no  longer  be    pointed    to.      See 

cvi.  21  f.     See  crit.  note.  E.   Bib.,   'Red    Sea.'      The   'stream' 

5  f.     The  sea-the  stream.     For  ("li^'' ,  see  crit.  note)  was  also  in  that 

the_j'(?///-.f/7//^  see  on  cvi.  7  ;   there  must  region;    .see   Crit.  Bib.  on  Josh.  iii. — 

have  been  a  story  of  a  '  sea  '  in  the  N.  7  f.  Cp.  xviii.  8,  .\xix.  6,  Hab.  iii.  6. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  Point  D'^I^Q.— M  Ty'?  U^'^-  O  eV  Aaoi"  (dap^dpov 
('A,  eT{poy\u)(T(Tov).  In  New  Heb.  Tl''?  means  '  to  speak  a  foreign  tongue  ' 
(Jastrow,  Liw.),  and  in  Isa.  .xxxiii.  19  IJl^,  which,  others  have  suggested, 
may  be  an  error  for  Tl'l'?-  Certainly  the  two  passages  must  be  taken 
together.  In  both  we  expect  an  ethnic,  not  a  word  meaning  ^ap^apo- 
(f)avoi,  and  considering  the  passages  referred  to  in  e.xeg.  n.,  we  cannot 
well  doubt  that  either  ':)4V};:Drn"'  or  ':)Ni'Qr'  is  the  right  ethnic.  In  cvii. 
30  wc  have  found  1111*0  and  in  cix.  19  PTTD,  words  which,  by  the  inter- 
change of  T  and  1,  have  come  to  represent  '7hi^n")'.  ]]?^  might,  by  the 
same  interchange,  also  represent  this  ethnic.  It  is  slightly  more  natural, 
however,  comparing  ^2Vii  and  b')2'\,  to  trace  it  to  '?^^^^'■J:i'^  and  the 
same  origin  must  undoubtedly  be  assigned  to  Ti'TI,  i-f.  ]1'1T  in  Isa.  xxxiii. 
19  (final  b-  as  often)  having  become  ]. — 4.  ',"2^'?  {b  precedes),  with  Gr. — 
6.  Read  'l^j'^^T  (cp.  on  cv.  30^?),  one  of  the  boundary-streams  of  the 
Ncgeb  seems  to  be  referred  to. — 16.  Read  ^J'^VQ/,  with  Gr.  (so  G  J  S 
probably). 

PSALM  CXV. 

1  RiMETERS.  This  and  the  preceding  psalm  are.  without  any  internal  justifica- 
tion, combined  in  G  0  S  J  and  some  Hebrew  MSS.  In  the  Hebrew  text,  too, 
there  is  a  trace  of  this"  practice,  for  the  two  psalms  are  not  separated  by  a 
'  Hallelujah.'  Cp.  on  I'.s.  cwi.,  and  for  tt.  4-1  i  cp.  cxx-xv.  15-20  (our  psalm  is 
the  original).     The  closing  '  Hallelujah  '  belongs  properly  to  Fs.  cxvi.  (so  in  G). 


PSALM    CXV.  155 

I  Not  unto  us,  O  Yahwe  !  not  unto  us,  i 

But  unto  thy  name  give  glory  : 
[Thy  name,  O  Yahwe  !  do  we  praise] 
Because  of  thy  kindness,  because  of  thy  truth. 

Why  do  the  nations  say,  2 

*  Where,  pra}-,  is  their  God  ?  ' 

But  our  God  is  in  heaven;  3 

All  that  he  wills  he  does. 

Their  idols  are  silver  and  gold,  4 

10  The  handiwork  of  men; 

Mouths  have  they,  but  they  speak  not;  5 

Eyes  have  they,  but  they  see  not; 

Ears  have  they,  but  they  hear  not,  6 

Noses  have  they,  but  they  smell  not: 
Their  hands — they  feel  not,  7 

Their  feet — they  walk  not  ; 

[There  is  no  breath  in  their  mouths,] 
They  give  no  sound  with  their  throats; 
Their  makers  shall  become  like  unto  them,  8 

20  Ever}'  one  that  trusts  in  them. 

Israel  trusts  in  Yahwe  ;  9 

He  is  their  help  and  their  shield. 

Aaron's  house  trusts  in  Yahwe  ;  10 

He  is  their  help  and  their  shield. 

[Levi's  house  trusts  in  Yahwe-  ; 

He  is  their  help  and  their  shield.] 

Those  that  fear  Yahwe  trust  in  Yahwe  ;  11 

He  is  their  help  and  their  shield. 

Yahwe  remembers  us,  he  will  bless,  12 

30  He  will  bless  the  house  of  Israel, 

He  will  bless  the  house  of  Aaron, 
[He  will  bless  the  house  of  Levi;] 

He  will  bless  those  that  fear  Yahwe,  13 

Small  as  well  as  great. 

Yahwe  add  to  you,  14 

To  you  and  to  your  children  ! 


156  THE    PSALMS. 

Blessed  be  ye  of  Yahwe,  15 

The  maker  of  heaven  and  earth  ! 

The  heaven  is  Yahwe's  heaven,  16 

40         The  earth  he  gave  to  the  sons  of  man. 

The  dead  praise  not  Yahwe,  17 

Nor  all  those  that  have  gone  down  into  +the  Land 

of+  Gloom  ; 
But  we  will  bless  Yahwb  18 

From  henceforth  and  for  ever. 

I   f.     Cp.  Dt.  vii.  7  f.,  Ezek.  xxxvi.  M   G     three-fold)     division,    'Israel,' 

22   f.— 5    f.    From   Ixxix.    10.      Here,  'house   of  Aaron,'    'house   of    Levi' 

however,    the    question,     Why  do  the  (this   from  cxxxv.  20),  and  '  fearers  ot 

nations,   &c.,   is   not   an   utterance    of  Vahwe.'     The  range  of  meaning  of  the 

complaint ;  it  is  the  opening  of  a  con-  last  of  these  terms  is  disputed.     In  the 

troversy   with   idolaters.     But  can   we  Psalter  itself  (see  on  xxii.  24)  there  is 

not    be    more    definite?     Here   as   in       „  -,     r  .,  ,  ,,    «v\-^» 

,,    T     •  \,  -^  ■    ^\.    TVT     A     u-        J  1  ^  evidence  for  a  wide  use  of    ^    ^N  1^  ; 

n.  Isaiah  it  is  the  N.  Arabian  idolaters  '         ' 

who  are  meant  ;  they  are  '  the  nations  '""ere,   however,   it   is   most  natural   to 

roundabout'  Israel  (2  K.  .xvii.  15  ;  cp.  suppose  that  proselytes  are  meant   (cp. 

on    Ps.    Ixxix.),   and  have   ever    been  i  K.  vm.  41,  Isa.  hi.  6).    This  enables 

noted  for  their  idolatry  (cp.  i  S.  v.  3,  "s.^o  account   for  the  mention  of  the 

2  S-  V.  21    Isa.  xix.  i).  children  of  the  '  fearers  of  Vahwe'  ;  in 

the    third    generation    the    distinction 

9-20.     A  piece  of  caustic  humour,  between   proselytes    and    Jews   disap- 

copied   in   cxxxv.    15-18.      The    copy  peared.     See  Bertholet,  Stelliing,  181 ; 

enables  us  to  restore  a  line  which  has  and  on  the  other  side,  A.  B.  Davidson, 

fallen  out  (/.  17  ;  see  cxxxv.  17*5').     For  Exp.  Times,  1892,  pp.  491  ff.     Israel, 

II.    19  f.  cp.   2  K.  xvii.  15,  Jer.  ii.  5,  /.f.  Jewish  laymen  (Ezr.  x.  25). 

Isa.  xliv.  9  f .  /-       T  •••        c    r 

41-44.     Cp.   Isa.    xxxviii.    lb   f. — 

21    ff.     Xote  the   four-fold  (but  in       j^The  Land oJ\  Gloom.    Seeonxciv.  17. 

Critical  Notes.     3.     Insert   mH"*   ^Ql^^TlN    Hlij,    with    Dii.  ;    cp. 
cxxxviii.  2. — 15  f.  Read  UPb  T^  and  Wrh   /^  (Du.). — 17.  See  exeg.  n. 

V  T         T  V  T         V   V 

— 21—28.  The  imperatives,  as  Street  (1790)  pointed  out.  do  not  agree 
with  the  suffixes  in  the  second  part  of  each  couplet.  Read  of  course 
njD2»  iniOl,  as  G.  So  Duhm.  For  '7^<"^ti^^  G  (as  M  in  cxxxv.  19) 
reads  "li^'^  JT'Q- — 32.  Insertion  from  cxxxv.  20. — 40.  HDn.  Read 
-DID'^iJ  (see  on  xciv.  17). 


PSALM    CXVL 

1  RniFViHRS.     A  thanksgiving  song  of  faithful  Israelites  at  the  opening  of  the 
Messianic  age  (cp.  on  Ps.  cxviii.),  which  is  doubtless  supposed  to  be  at  hand. 

The  speaker  is  the  company  of  D^^^i^^  within  the  larger  tTTp  or   '  congregation  ' 

(xxii.  23),  which  represents  the  true  Isiaelitish  ideal,  and  sometimes  speaks  in  the 
character  of  the  pet)ple  of  Israel.  It  has  been  doubted  whether  the  psalm  is 
perfectly  consistent  throughout  as  regards  the  tone  and  the  point  of  time.  The 
only  passage,  however,  in  which  our  text  suggests  a  change  of  tone  is  in  //.  15  f., 
where  the  psalmist  certainly  seems  to  imply  that  perfect  security  is  still  wanting 


PSALM    CXVI.  157 

(cp.  cxviii.  25).  Here,  at  any  rate,  the  psalmist  docs  appear  to  desert  the  position 
that  he  has  imaginatively  taken  up  at  '  the  end  of  the  days.'  Many  have  thought 
that  the  psalm  only  becomes  fully  intelligible  when  assigned  to  the  Maccaba.'an 
period.  The  mention  of  the  death  of  the  Ilasidim  ( =  AonSoToi  ?  cp.  i  Mace.  ii.  42) 
is  appealed  to  in  favour  of  this.  The  text  of  v.  13,  however,  is  highly  doubtful, 
and  a  study  of  this  and  the  parallel  psalms,  in  the  light  of  a  keen  textual  criticism, 
suggests  a  different  theory.  From  a  gloss  which  has  found  its  way  into  v.  19  we 
infer  that  this  is  one  of  the  psalms  which  came  from  the  chief  centre  of  Jewish 
religion  in  the  Negeb.  In  a  passage  of  '  Isaiah'  (Isa.  xix.  18)  which  seems  to 
reflect  the  state  of  things  after  the  so-called  '  Return,'  there  is  a  reference  to  '  five 
cities  in  the  land  of  Misrim  speaking  the  language  of  Canaan  and  swearing  to 
Yahwe  Sebaoth,  one  of  which  was  called  Ir-haheres.'  The  latter  name  no  doubt 
comes  from  Ir-ashliur  (see  Crit.  Bib.,  ad loc),  and  belongs  to  the  place  where 
there  was  an  attar  to  Yahwe  {j\  20).  There  are  numerous  glosses  in  the  psalms 
which  prove  that  Ashhur  and  Jerahmeel  (both  archaic  names)  were  often  used 
synonymously  ;  consequently,  we  need  not  doubt  that  this  Ir-ashhur  was  the 
same  as  Beth-jerahmeel  or  Gibeath-jerahmeel,  a  sacred  city,  again  and  again 
referred  to,  where  (as  shown  in  Ps.  cxxii.)  there  was  probably  a  temple  of  Yahwe 
more  dear  to  many  Jews  than  that  of  Jerusalem. 

For  the  points  of  contact  between  our  psalm  and  Pss.  xviii.,  xxii.,  xxxi., 
xxxix.,  Ivi.,  Ixii.,  Ixxiii.,  Ixxxvi.,  cxviii.,  see  on  vv.  3,  9,  10,  II,  16,  19.  G  is 
wrong  in  dividing  the  poem  into  two  parts  {I'v.  1-9  and  10-19)  each  preceded  by 
AA\7]\i>via,  but  is  doubtless  right  in  prefixing  the  '  Hallelujah  '  (rather  '  Of  the 
Jerahmeelites '),  which  in  M  closes  Ps.  cxv.,  to  Ps.  cxvi.  i  (so  also  T),  also  in 
placing  the  same  formula,  not  at  the  end  of  Ps.  cxvi.,  but  at  the  head  of 
Ps.  cxvii. 

0/  the  Jerahmeelites. 

I     I  am  confident  that  Yahwe  hears  ]  my  suppHant  cry,  i 

For    he    has   leaned    his    ear    toward    me,   |   from    mine 

enemies  I  shall  be  delivered.  2 

If  snares  of  Jerahmeel  have   surrounded  me,  |  if  nets  of 

Ishmael  have  confronted  me,  3 

I  will  call  upon  Yahwe's  name,  |  '  O  Yahwe  !  set  free  my 

soul.'  4 

Full  of  pity  is  Yahwe,  and  righteous  ;  |  yea,  our  God  is 
compassionate.  ;^ 

Yahwe  guards  the  simple  ;  |  if  I  am  brought  low,  he 
succours  me  ;  6 

Return  to  thy  rest,  O  my  soul,  |  for  Yahwe  has  done  thee 
good.  7 

For  he  has  rescued  my  soul  from   Death,  |  mine  eye  from 

tears  2  ;  8 

10  I  walk  in  Yahwe's  presence  |  in  the  land  of  the  living.  0 

I  repent  that  I  was  a  dullard,  |  I  did  most  foolishly  ;  10 

I  said  in  mj'  consternation,  |  '  All  piety  is  a  lie.'  1 1 

^  My  foot  from  stumbling. 


158  THE    PSALMS. 

How  can  I  requite  Yahwe  |  for  all  the  good  I  have  received  ?  1 2 
I  will  raise  the  ensign  of  victor}',  |  and   call  upon  Yahwe's 

name.'  i  ^ 

I  will  call  upon  Yahwe's  name,  |  '  Set  free  thy  pious  one,  15 

0  Yahwe,  for  I  ana  thy  servant,  |  because  of  thy  faithfulness.'  16 

Thou  hast  loosed  my  bonds,  |  ■■'■         ■■'■         '■'■• 

1  will  offer  thee  a  sacrifice  of  thanksgiving,  |  and  call  upon 

Yahwe's  name  ;  17 

My  vows  will  1  pay  to  Yahwe  |  before  the  assembly  of  his   18 
people, 
20  In  the  courts  of  Yahwe's  house  ^  |  '■'         *         ■■'•         ■•' 

I.  For  the  idea  see  Iwi.  20.— 2/;.  (see    note).     The    startling    utterance 

Cp.  2  S.  xxii.  4^1. — 3  f.  Note  that  this  in  /.    12/'  is   to  be  taken  in  connexion 

represents      the      (prolmble)     original  with  xxxix.  6,  Ixii.  10,  Ixxiii.  15,  and, 

couplet  underlying  xviii.  5  f.  ''J1QJ2D  ;  of  course,  with  parts  of  Job.     It  is  not 

cp.  cxviii.  10  f.  wonderful   that    the    original   Job    was 

-,,y»-.-  supplemented,    and    that     the    psalni- 

7-     u'i^JlS    here    of    those    who  passages  were  severely  manipulated. 

place  no  trust   in   their   own   wisdom,  ,.      ™».„    „_„• *•      j  * 

1    .V,      f         ^      .  1    -.1     •    Ar  .  14-     The    ensig-n    of    victory. 

and,  therefore,  trust  miphcitly  in  \ah-  -pj^g  .  ^„,ig„  >  ;„  ^^is  passage  is  not  for 

vve.     A  narro^^•er  sense  in  xix.  5,  and  assembling  the  troops  (Jer.  iv.  21),  but 

altogether  a  different  one  in  Prcv.  1.  22,  to  give   notice   of  victory  (Jer.    1.    2). 

It  is  to  acquaint  the  Jews  of  the  Dis- 

9  f.     Possibly  influenced  by  Ivi.  14  persion,    and    all     friends    and    well- 

(see   ad  loc).     Cp.    also    Isa.  xxv.  8,  wishers   of  Israel,    with  the  fortunate 

and  (for/.  10)  Ps.  xxvii.  13,  cxviii.  17  f.  turn  of  events  in   Palestine  (cp.  cxviii. 

15). 

II  f.     A  14^4  's  one  who  has  no  ^^^      ^^^^  ^„  j^^^^j    ,6.-1^.    Cp. 

spiritual   insight ;    cp.    on    Ixxiii.    22,  xxii.  25. —  Note  the  geographical  gloss, 

xcii.  7. — Line  12a  comes  from  xxxi.  23  See  introd.,  and  crit.  note. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  M  ''jniinS,  G  rjydiTTjaa  (on).  First,  is  this  the 
right  verb,  and  next,  if  it  is,  what  is  its  object  ?  That  the  psalmist  had 
Ps.  xviii.  in  his  mind  when  he  wrote  t/.  3  is  certain;  possibly  t.  ib  also 
betrays  reminiscences  of  that  psalm.  It  is  plausible  therefore  to  assume 
that  2^^<  was  substituted  by  the  poet  for  the  'uncommon'  Dm.  In 
this  case  we  must  either  read  'TT\"i^nh}  (D  follows)  or,  transposing,  read 
yj^^Ti-ij  jyy^y^  ■'/^Il^^i.  Bii.  prefers  the  former.  Du.  the  latter  course. 
But  neither  here  nor  in  xviii.  2  do  we  expect  the  verb  '  I  love.'  There  is. 
deep  corruption.     Read,  with  Bruston   and    Griitz,  ''inji^Kn  (cp.  xxvii. 

13).  "'"'"''' 

M  Snp><  Vp'^ni,  'all  my  life  long  (cp.  2  K.  xx.  19)  will  I  call.'  i^ip 
used  absolutely,  as  iv.  2,  xxii.  3,  xxxiv.  7,  Ixix.  4.  This,  however,  can 
hardly  be  called  natural.  Hupf.,  Du.  read  ^<"^p^}  "•  Dli^21  (see  vv.  4, 
13,  17).     The  construction  is  certainly  much  easier,  but  the  connexion  is 

'    V.  14  is  identical  with  z'.  iS.  -'  In  .Maacath-ishniael. 


PSALM    CXVI. 


159 


Still   not    natural.     Read   perhaps   ^]i}Mi   "'TJ^i^ST  (2    S.  xxii.  4^).     The 

neighbourhood  of  2*}~lpJ^  produced  the  scribe's  error.  So  in  2  S  .xxii.  7, 
by  a  scribe's  error.  ^J~lp^}  is  given  in  two  consecutive  verse-members  ; 
in  Ps.  xviii.  7  the  second  verb  is  piU^N.  ""Q^^T  is  a  good  instance  of  the 
way  in  which  some  sense  was  extracted  by  editors  from  an  imperfect 
group  of  letters. 

3.  Read  bii:}:2V'  ""vp^D  "^^'21^  ':'^<^3^T  ^j^nn  ^jin^p-    This 

became  partly  corrupted,  partly  assimilated  to  the  already  edited  text  of 
xviii.  5,  6,  by  the  editor.  .See  the  Addendum  on  xviii.  5  f.  pJ^T  m^ 
hi^!2N  is  a  corrupt  variant  to  the  corrupt  words  "'JINiJD  b'^ii'^  H^QT. 
PJl^  probably  comes  from  'Ml'',  i.e.  7^i'J^T"l^ 

8.  The  O  in  the  suffixes  is  a  scribe's  error ;  in  each  case  ^3  follows. 
Similarly  the  initial  "•  in  M's  "irT*  (an  inadmissible  form,  see  on  xxviii.  7) 
is  dittographed  ;  ^7  precedes. 

9  f .  Read  '^bu  (G,  Du.)  and  omit  THT^i  '*'7^■^"/^^^ ,  an  insertion 
suggested  by/.  10  (Du.,  metre). — M  Diji"1N21  •  The  form  is  no  doubt 
possible,  though,  as  Ges.  points  out,  miilSn  is  used  specially  of  the 
regions  outside  of  Palestine  (cp.  cvi.  27).  IJut  •  lands  '  is  not  natural 
here.  In  xxvii.  13  the  phrase  is  Q>^n  Y")N3. ;  in  Isa.  xxxviii.  n,  Vn^;} 
D'^'nn.  We  must  read  either  yiSIl  or  J-n^■|^<2  (as  Weir,  Acad., 
July  I.  1873,  p.  251),  though  mN21  would  be  more  natural,  cp.  Prov.  ii. 

19,  v.  6,  XV.  24.     Cp.  on  Ivi.  14. 

II.  M  ^3"^^|  "'3  ^jn^DJ^n  ;  G  trria-Tevcra  8i6  (]2b)  eAa'Xjjira  (a  guess, 
adopted  unfortunately  by  Duhm,  cp.  2  Cor.  iv.  13).  One  thing  should 
be  certain,  viz.  that  the  ordinary  ways  of  explaining  ^Ps  text  are  most 
improbable.  We  can  neither  render,  '  I  kept  my  hold  (upon  God,  even) 
when  I  spoke,  (saying,)  I  am  sore  afflicted,'  nor  '  I  show  faith  when  (thus) 
I  speak  (cp.  w.  5-9),  and  yet  I  (the  person  who  speaks  thus  confidently) 
have  been  sore  afflicted'  (cp.  the  expression  of  alarm  in  ?/.  11,  M).  If 
^"IJlDl^n  is  right,  it  would  seem  that  "^21^i  must  be  wrong.  It  would 
be  possible  to  read  ~)DTS   O    'H ,  '  I  am   confident  that    I    shall    sing 

praise.'  But  this  is  not  perfectly  suitable  to  the  context.  We  must 
assume  that  both  ^DJQhin  and  ~)21K  are  corrupt.  The  passage  can 
hardly  be  explained  from  itself  ;  it  is  doubtful  whether  the  most 
ingenious  critic,  limited  to  7'.  10,  would  be  able  to  detect  the  underlying 
text.  We  must  first  of  all  correct  7'.  11,  which  is  possible  in  the  light  of 
our  previous  work  on  Ps.  xxxix.  When  we  have  done  this,  we  shall 
probably  recollect  Ixxiii.  13-15,  22,  and  shall  be  encouraged  to  read,  as 
the  true  text  of  7/.  10, 

■^^g  ^js^-^3  ^rs-pn^ 


l6o  THE    PSALMS. 

12.     M  2T3    D'Thin"'?3.  nets  avdp.  yj/evarrji,  'all  men  are  liars '  (AV). 

T  T  T  T 

'A  J  presuppose  3T3  •  See,  however,  on  Ixii.  lo.  That  human  alliances 
were  not  to  be  trusted,  was  a  discovery  which  the  Jews  had  long  since 
made  ;  it  was  Simon  the  Maccabee  who  first  renounced  this  conviction. 
Something  far  worse  must  surely  have  risen  to  the  lips  of  the  psalmist 
and  his  friends  to  produce  the  consternation  of  which  he  speaks  ; 
3T3  "TDrTn"/3.     Here  again,  no  doubt,  it  may  plausibly  be  said  that  the 

TT  V   V-  T 

Jews  must  have  had  such  thoughts  and  spoken  such  words  before.  But 
they  were  thoughts  and  words  which,  rejected  once,  returned  again  with 
all  their  horrible  plausibility,  and  shocked  believers  as  though  freshly 
invented  by  the  evil  one.     Cp.  on  xxxix.  6/^  Ixxiii.  15. 

14.  M    nil'm'*"Di3,  referring  apparently  to  a  rite  'not  mentioned 

elsewhere  in  the  O.T.'  (Duhm).  The  parallel  from  C/S  i.  i  (see  Cooke, 
North-Seju.  Insn-iptiotis,^.  19,  cp.  p.  7),  suggested  in  PsS^\  on  the  basis  of 
Clermont-Ganneau,  Etudes  d'archeol.  07-ient.^  1880,  p.  12,  is  too  far-fetched. 
That  D3  and  DJ  are  liable  to  comparison  we  have  seen  elsewhere  (see 
on  Ix.  6). —  V.  14  (=7'.  18)  is  omitted  in  Ci^,  and  in  Holmes-Parsons,  55. 

15.  The  c/^z</ difficulty  in  7',  15  is  VTOn'^  nm^Srf.     The  old  accu- 

T  :  T  - 

sative  ending  is  very  improbable  here.  01.,  Bii.,  Du.  would  read 
n*?  n/11DJ^>  and  explain  7  as  indicating  the  genitive,  as  xxxvii.  16, 
I  S.  xiv.  16.  But  this  unusual  construction  with  7  is  suspicious  (cp. 
Du.  on  xxxvii.  16),  and  the  word  nniDD  itself  is  doubtful  (see  on  Ixxix. 
11).  Nor  is  this  all.  How  can  the  death  of  the  pious  be  said  to  be 
'precious'  in  Yahwe's  eyes?  Jeremy  Taylor  paraphrases,  'It  is  an 
expense  that  God  delights  not  in,'  but  in  a  psalm  of  thanksgiving  we  do 
not  expect  such  a  strangely  moderate  statement.  To  suppose  that  1p^ 
occurs  here  alone  in  the  primary  meaning  '  heavy,  grave,'  is  too  fanciful  ; 
in  Ixxii.  14  ViV3  Di^~T  "^p^^  means,  not  'a  grave  thing  is  their  blood- 
shed '  (as  if  =  Dn^"D"T)>  but  '  precious  is  their  soul '  (see  Dillm.  on  Gen. 
ix.  4).  The  whole  of  %'.  15,  therefore,  with  the  possible  exceptions  of 
mn"'  and  Vl"'Dn,  labours  under  the  suspicion  of  corruptness.  In 
emending  it,  we  are  helped  partly  by  our  experience  elsewhere,  partly 
b\-  consideration  of  the  context.     Comparing  v.  4,  I  propose  Dti^Il  N"lpJ^ 

^T'DH  HtD^D  TWTV  ■  That  ^y  may  come  from  Z\  and  *^  from  ^  need 
hardly  be  demonstrated. 

16.  Omit   the   dittographed   "fl2y  "'JN ,   and   for    ':yriQJ<"]2    lead 
^n^^<  ]}!uh  (see  on  Ixx.xvi.  16). 

19-     M  ^BV"?^^  iirnii: .     Read  i^y  ^Ip  i:i^b  ■     IJJ  or  u:"? 

-       t:        T         t:v  -       -':       vv: 

seems  to  have  been  dittographed  ;  the  second  l^j?  became  corrupt. 
bj  for  7np  occurs  occasionally. 


PSALM    CXVII.  l6l 

20.  M  q'ij::;!-!^  ODina.  is  this  right  ?  The  address  to  Jerusalem 
is  unexpected,  and  probably,  as  in  cxxii.  2,  is  due  to  misunderstanding. 
We  might  read  '1*1^  Tjin3,  but  this  would  be  very  poor  whether  for  the 
text  or  as  a  gloss.  In  Iv.  12  and  Ixxii.  14  "J/l  or  "jin  represents  JID^D. 
This  gives  the  key  to  ODID^ ,  for  which  (as  in  cxxxv.  9)  we  should  read 
ri^)?D2.  (''D=Q)-  D'^Ii'l'T',  as  c.j^'-.  in  Zech.  xii.  11,  xiv.  14,  comes  from 
7^i3^.'2ti'^ .  'In  Maacath-ishmael' defines  the  situation  of  the  'house  of 
Yahwe.'     See  introd. 


PSALM   CXVII. 

A.  RIMETERS.  On  account  of  its  brevity,  many  MSS.  combine  this  with  the 
preceding  or  the  following  psalm.  M  closes  cxvii.  with  '  Hallelujah';  G  prefixes 
it  to  cxviii. 

0/  the  Jerahineelites.  cxvi.,  end. 

I  Praise  Yahwe  !  all  ye  nations,  I 

Laud  him,  all  ye  peoples  (?)  : 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  mighty  over  us,  2 

And  Yahwe's  truth  endures  for  ever. 

Critical  Notes,  i  f.  Hili^,  an  Aram,  word  (Ixiii.  4,  cxiv.  4,  cxivii.  12, 
and  cp.  on  xlvii.  10  ;  Eccles.  iv.  2,  viii.  15  ;  Hithp.  in  cvi.  47,  i  Chr.  xvi. 
35).     See  Kautzsch,  Die  Aramaismen.,  i.  87. — D"'Q^i  only  here.     Should 

we  read  rm^  ?  or  D^a^<'?  ?  or  D^'^^^^ni^  ?— 3-  12:  .     Cp.  on  ciii.  11. 


PSALM    CXVIII. 

i  RIMETERS.  It  has  long  been  thought  plausible  to  hold  that  Ps.  cxviii., 
though  not  without  a  forward-looking  Messianic  element,  was  immediately 
occasioned  and  dictated  by  some  great  public  event,  which  mightily  stirred  the 
heart  of  the  Jewish  community.  Together  with  Ps.  ex.,  this  psalm  has  been 
held  to  be  distinguished  from  the  other  members  of  Book  v.  by  the  greater 
distinctness  of  the  historic  situation,  i.e.  by  its  containing  certain  details  which, 
taken  together,  require  us  to  assign  it  to  the  Maccabaan  period  (see  OP, 
pp.  16-18),  and  the  repeated  refrain,  '  in  the  name  of  Yahwe,  I  will  cut  them  in 
pieces'  (Reuss),  or  '  .  .  I  will  massacre  them'  (Brusten),  or  ' .  .  I  will  mow  them 
down'  (/'5.  (•' ;  Driver),  in  vv.  10,  11,  12,  has  excited  our  pity  for  persecuted 
Jewish  sufferers  driven  to  desperation.  The  case,  however,  is  not  so  clear  as 
it  formerly  appeared.  It  is  certainly  not  impossible  that  some  recent  event  may 
have  given  fresh  impetus  to  the  Messianic  or  idealistic  tendency  among  the  Jews. 
But  even  if  so,  we  must  not  limit  our  exegesis  by  a  regard  to  this  jMissibility. 
It  is  most  natural  to  assume  that  in  zi'.  13-29  the  poet  of  the  believing  com- 
munity places  himself  in  imagination  at  the  happy  issue  of  the  expected  crisis 
in  Israel's  history.  If  so,  the  '  cry  of  rejoicing '  (/.  29)  is  that  into  which  Israel 
will  break  '  in  the  day  that  Yahwe  binds  up  the  hurt  of  his  people'  (Isa.  xxx.  6, 
cp.  29),  and  the  thanksgiving  service  in  the  temple  which  is  referred  to  in  /.  38  is 
to  celebrate,  not  '  the  return  of  the  Jewish  army  from  a  victorious  campaign ' 
(Wellh.),  but  the  consummation  of  Yahwe's  past  lovingkindnesses  by  the  crowning 

II.  -M 


l62  THE    PSALMS. 

mercy  of  the  great  '  day  of  Valnve  ' — the  day  which,  in  the  fullest  sense,  '  Vahwe 
has  made '  (/.  47),  The  '  stone  which  the  builders  rejected  '  is  not  the  AsmonKan 
family,  but  poor  and  aftlicted  Israel.  The  prowess  of  '  the  right  hand  of  Vahwe ' 
was  not  supported  by  a  Judas  or  by  any  human  warrior  (cp.  Isa.  Ixiii.  1-6). 
The  other  passages  from  which  an  inference  favourable  to  the  Maccabrean  theory 
might  be  drawn,  assume  a  difierent  appearance  as  the  result  of  textual  criticism. 

D7^Q^J  ^3  in  particular  becomes  something  very  diflferent,  and  quite  un- 
suggestive  of  a  sanguinary  vengeance. — A  close  aftinity  between  our  psalm  and 
Pss.  cxv.,  cxvi.,  is  manifest  even  in  the  traditional  text.  It  should  be  added  that, 
according  to  an  old  opinion  (see  Targum),  the  psalm  was  intended  to  Ije  sung  by 
different  voices.  This  is  plausible  ;  a  dramatic  character  is  of  the  very  essence  of 
the  ancient  cults.  Cp.  Zenner,  Die  Chori^esdiige  im  B.  der  Psalnien  (1896),  and 
Duhm's  commentary. — On  the  practical  bearings  of  the  criticism  of  this  psalm, 
see  Cheyne,  Christian  Use  of  the  Psalms,  pp.  249-259. 

Of  the  Jerahmeelites.  cxvii.,  end. 

I  Give  thanks  to  Yahwe,  for  he  is  gracious,  I 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 
Let  Israel  extol  him,  2 

For  his  lovingkindess  is  everlasting. 

Let  Aaron's  house  extol  him,  3 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 
Let  those  that  fear  Yahwe  extol  him,  4 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

Out  of  the  toils  I  called  upon  Yahwe,  5 

10  '  Deliver  me  front  those  of  Jerahraeel.' 

Yahwe  is  my  redeemer,  I  fear  not  ;  6 

What  can  earth's  race  do  to  me  ? 

Yahw^  is  my  redeemer  and  my  helper ;  7 

Mine  e3'e  will  look  in  triumph  on  my  haters. 

It  is  better  to  take  refuge  in  Yahwe  8 

Than  to  trust  in  man  ; 

It  is  better  to  take  refuge  in  Yahwe  9 

Than  to  trust  in  princes. 

If  all  nations  1  have  surrounded  me,  10 
20             On  Yahwe's  name  do  I  call  ; 

Have  they^  even  surrounded  me  like  bees,  12a 

On  Yahwe's  name  do  I  call  ;  11b 

Have  theyi  flamed  up  like  a  fire  among  thorns,  izb 

On  Yahwe's  name  do  I  call.  12c 

'  Jerahmeelites. 


PSALM   cxviir.  163 

Hard  was  I  pushed  that  I  might  fall,  13 

But  Yahwe  helped  me. 

Yahwb  is  my  rock,  my  helper  ;  14 

He  became  my  deliverer. 

A  cr}'  of  rejoicing  and  of  deliverance  1 5 

30  [Is  heard]  in  the  tents  of  the  righteous, — 

*  The  right  hand  of  Yahwb  has  won  preeminence  ; 
The  right  hand  of  Yahwe  has  exalted  me.' 

I  shall  not  die,  but  live,  17 

And  recount  the  works  of  Yahwe. 

Yahwe  has  indeed  corrected  me,  18 

But  he  has  not  given  me  over  to  Death. 

Open  to  me  the  gates  of  righteousness,  19 

That  I  may  enter  b}-  them  and  thank  Yahwe. 
This  is  the  gate  of  Yahwe,  20 

40  Righteous  ones  can  enter  by  it. 

I  give  thee  thanks  because  thou  hast  answered  me,      2 1 
And  hast  become  my  deliverance. 

The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected  22 

Is  become  the  principal  stone. 

This  is  Yahwe's  appointing,  23 

Wonderful  is  it  in  our  eyes. 

This  is  the  day  which  Yahwe  has  made  ;  24 

Exult  we,  rejoice  we  because  of  it. 

Our  redeemer  is  Yahwe  ;  he  has  succoured  us  :  25 

50  Our  redeemer  is  Yahwe  ;  he  has  prospered  us.i 

Make  melody  with  dancing  and  with  timbrels,  27 

Make  melody  to  our  King,  make  melody. 

Thou  art  my  God,  I  will  thank  thee  :  28 

Thou  art  my  God,  I  will  extol  thee. 

Give  thanks  to  Yahw^,  for  he  is  gracious  ;  29 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

^  Blessed  in  the  name  of  Vahwc  be  he  that  enters  ! 
We  bless  you  from  Vahvve's  house  (v.  26). 


164 


THE     PSALMS. 


1-8.  Cp.  this  prelude  with  cvii.  2, 
cxxxvi.  I,  cxv.  9-1 1,  Ezra  iii.  lO  f. 
Note  the  repetition  of  liturgical  phrases. 

9  f.  Cp.  //.  19-24.  Both  passages 
resemble  cxvi.  //.  3,  4.  — 11.  Aly 
redeemer.  Similarly  //.  49, 50.  Deutero- 
isaianic  (Isa.  xliii.  14,  ivc.)  ;  cp.  xix. 
15,  Ixxviii.  35.  — 12.  So  Ivi.  12//.  — 14. 
So  liv.  9. — 15-18.  Cp.  cxlvi.  3. — 
19-24.  A  hypothetical  orratheranticipa- 
tive  description.  The  enemies  of  Israel 
will  make  a  final  attempt  at  his  de- 
struction. But  prayer,  not  a  two- 
edged  sword  (cxlix.  6),  will  be  Israel's 
deliverance.  AH  nations  =  '  all  the 
peoples  round  about,'  Zech.  xii.  2. — 
20.  "^  D^^ ;  three  times  in  this  ps. , 
as  in  Ps.  cxvi. — 21.  Like  bees.  Cp. 
Dt.  i.  44  ;  Isa.  vii.  18/;.,  and  see  E. 
Bib.,  '  Bee.'  —  23.  Among  thorns. 
Cp.  2  S.  xxiii.  6  f.  ;  Isa.  xxxiii.  12. 

27  f.  An  appropriate  quotation 
from  Ex.  xv.  2  (cp.  Isa.  xii.  2).  See 
crit.  n. — 29-32.  Cp.  xliv.  4,  Ix.  14. — 
33-36.  The  final  inference ;  Israel  is 
not  doomed  to  extinction,  but  will 
'  recount '  the  wonderful  works  of  God, 
to  whom  grateful  praise  is  acceptable 
(cp.  on  vi.  6). — 37  ff.  Here  there 
seems  to  be  a  change  of  voice.  The 
procession  has  reached  the  temple- 
gates  where  a  pause  is  made.  A  voice 
from  within  states  the  conditions  of 
admission  (//.  39,  40).  Then  the 
former  speaker  (the  festal  procession?) 
praises  Yahwe  for  his  deliverance. — 
37.  Gates  of  rii^hteousness.  Two 
explanations.  (i)  There  are  many 
sanctuaries,  but  only  one  with  a 
righteous  law.  One  of  the  chief  marks 
of  Jewish  heretics  was  that  they  *  forgot 
Vahwe's  holy  mountain,'  and  resorted 
to  heathen  sanctuaries  (Isa.  Ixv,  11). 
(2)  '  Righteousness '  =  '  deliverance ' ; 
cp.  Isa.  Ix.  \%b,  '  thy  wails  Deliverance, 
and  thy  gates  Praise.'  Only  the 
righteous  can  profit  by  Yahwe's 
righteous  acts. — 43  f.  Cp.  Jer.  li.  26, 
and  see  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Corner.'  Israel, 
despised  by  all  the  powers  of  the 
world,  has  became  the  great  world- 
power.  The  psalmist  has  the  eye  of 
faith,  and  looks  to  the  Messianic  age. — 
46.  Wonderful,  i.e.  exceptional,  mira- 
culous. Cp.  Gen.  xviii.  14,  '  Is  any- 
thing too  wonderful  (hJ73^)  for  Vahwc,' 
Jer.  xxxii.  17,  27. 

49  f.    Here  the  text  is  corrupt  (see 


crit.  n.).  It  runs  thus,  '  I  beseech,  O 
Yahwe  !  pray,  deliver  :  I  beseech,  O 
"S'ahwe  !  pray,  deliver,'  words  which, 
though  unsuitable  to  the  context  (see 
next  note),  seemed  to  a  later  age  to  be 
an  appropriate  expression  of  Israel's 
thankful  rejoicings  at  the  Feast  of 
Booths  (Mishna,  Siicca  iv.  5). — Our 
redeemer,  &c.  A  passage  of  song 
which  expresses  the  exultation  called 
for  in  /.  48.  For  the  divine  title  see 
on  /.  II.  It  is  naturally  followed  by 
'our  king'  (/.  52),  for  it  is  a  king's 
duty  to  right  the  oppressed.  Now  that 
(to  the  eye  of  faith)  the  '  day  of  re- 
demption '  has  come,  Israel  rejoices, 
not  by  uttering  a  prayer  for  succour 
and  prosperity,  but  by  acknowledging 
the  succour  and  prosperity  actually 
attained.  It  is  now  possible  to  declare, 
with  the  fullest  conviction,  that  '  his 
lovingkindness  is  everlasting.' 

51  f.  This  jubilant  passage  is 
obscured  by  fresh  textual  corruption 
(see  crit.  n.).  Assuming  the  text  to 
be  correct,  references  have  been 
supposed  in  v.  2'ja  to  the  illumination 
which  gave  rise  to  the  second  name  of 
the  Ilanucca  or  Dedication-festival 
('the  Lights '),  a  name  which  Josephus 
{Ant.  xii.  7,  7)  regards  as  a  symbol  of 
unexpected  deliverance,  and  in  b  and  e 
to  the  processions  of  festal  worshippers 
carrying  and  shaking  branches  of  olive, 
palm,  myrtle,  &c.  (Neh.  viii.  15, 
Lev.  xxiii.  40;  cp.  i  Mace.  xiii.  51, 
2  Mace.  X.  7).  The  first  reference  is 
too  vague  to  carry  weight  by  itself. 
Even  the  second,  though  apparently 
definite,  is  highly  obscure.  If  the 
members  of  the  chorus  were  summoned 
to  bind  themselves  with  branches  (or, 
as  Lagarde,  with  'araiJ-trees),  how 
was  this  to  be  done?  Dr.  J.  P. 
Peters  regards  v.  27  as  'a  prosaically 
arranged  direction — a  ritual  rubric  ' 
interpolated  from  the  margin.  Surely, 
a  veiy  unintelligible  one.  We  may 
conjecture  that  the  direction  meant 
that  a  procession  round  the  altar  was 
to  be  made,  in  the  course  of  which  the 
horn-like  projections  at  the  corners 
were  to  be  touched  (cp.  I  K.  i.  50,  ii. 
28,  and  Plutarch's  phrase,  in  the  Life 
of  Theseus,  exf^pffce  irtpi  rbv  KfpaTwva 
^(»fx6v,  where  the  context  shows  that 
tiie  efficacy  of  the  dance  spoken  of  was 
connected  with  the  numerous  '  horns ' 
of  the  altar).  In  spite  of  Konig  {Styl., 
29)  I  doubt  whether  JH  here  or    any- 


PSALM    CXVIII.  165 

where  can  be  held  lo  mean  '  sacrificial  and  cannot  by  any  amount  of  learning 
victim.'  Still  the  explanation  here  be  made  satisfactory  (cp.,  however, 
reported  (see  /V."'  aJ  loc.)  is  artificial,       Griinbaum,  ZDMG,  1886,  pp.  276  ff. 

Critical  Notes.  3,5,7.  ^<y^Q^i''  (■"nr3^<'')•  Cp.  cxxiv.  \b,  cxxix.  \b. 
Here,  however,  the  phrase  is  surely  too  weak.  Read  ^•lDQi"1\  imO^il^- 
Elsewhere  too  (//.  49  f.,  cxvi.  4,  16)  XJ  as  well  as  ^2^<  is  due  to 
corruption. — G  reads  V^^lti^*  T^l- 

g{.  The  couplet  is  painfully  vague  ;  "lifDn,  '  the  trouble  which  any 
individual  in  the  chorus  may  have  experienced'  (Duhm)  ?  We  might 
point  l^i^S,  but  neither  this  word  nor  D^HiJDri  is  to  be  expected  here. 

Most   probably   "liiDH   has    come   from    D^ti^plDIl,    'the    toils,'   i.e.   of 

Jerahmeel  ;   cxvi.,  /.  3,  is    parallel;   cp.  xviii.  6. — M  iT'^niDZ,   Baer., 

T :  -   :  V  - 

Ginsb.,  following  the  Westerns  ;  or  n^~3mD^ ,  according  to  the  Easterns 
(see  Ginsb.,  /iitroci.,  pp.  385  f.).  [G  2  do  not  recognize  the  second  H^] 
The  former,  however,  is  not  less  doubtful  than  the  H^t'DKI^  of  Jer.  ii.  31, 
even  after  the  learned  and  acute  explanation  offered  by  Jastrow  {ZATIV, 
xvi.  4  fif.).  The  latter  is  only  tolerable  if  we  remove  the  Makkeph,  so  as  to 
render  (01.,  BJi.),  'Yahwe  has  answered  me  by  giving  me  ample  room,'  or 
'  by  placing  me  in  an  ample  room.'  But  we  expect  some  more  definite 
statement.  Probably  we  should  read,  disregarding  initial  ^  as  virtually 
dittographic,  D''[':'i<]QmL"']D  '•jy^n.  rT*  and  D""  can  be  confounded 
cp.  Kt.  and  Kr.  in  Prov.  xx.  16).     'Ji^n  ;  cp.  on  Ixix.  14. 

ir,    13.     M   "h.     Weak.     Read   'h'i^l-,   on  the  analogy  of  xxvii.   la. 

— 13  f.    M  ^"liyil,  'among  my  helpers' (Duhm  &c.),  or'as  my  (great) 

helper'  (Del.,  Driver,  &c.)  ;  cp.  liv.  6l>,  Iv.  19,  Judg.  v.  13,  23.  Gr.  reads 
^IT^Jl  ;  cp.  cxlvi.  5.     But  the  passages   compared    are    most   probably 

corrupt.     Read  here  ■'ITi'V     G,  6>oi  /3o»j^os-.— M  ^^<^^<  '•JNT;  awkward 

and  unusual.     Read  nj^in  ^J'J?T  (cp.  liv.  9). 

20,  22,  24.  IVI  0*^^125^  ^3  (on  sufif.,  see  Kon.  i.  495,  224  ;  Ges.- 
Kau. '-''',  §  26d).  There  is  a  twofold  difficulty,  (i)  The  position  and 
meaning  of  ^3.  To  prefix  mentally  "^DV^V^,  is  unnatural;  Konig's 
explanation,  '(it  happened  that)  I  hewed  them  in  pieces '  {Synf.  §  382/), 
is  not  less  unsatisfactory.  For  the  position  of  ^3j  Ewald  and  Hupf. 
compare  [cxx.  7],  cxxviii.  2,  but  with  doubtful  justice  (see  notes).  (2) 
The  meaning  of  DTQhJ.  ^VJH  should  mean  either  'to  cjrcumcise'  or 
'  to  mow  down.'  But  the  word  is  not  natural  here.  The  r^fivvafxr^v  of 
G 'A,  has  suggested  to  Ew.  and  Hitz.  '  ich  wehre  sie  ab,'  i.e. '■I  repel 
them;'  but  we  must  not  justify  this  from  the  Arabic  lexicon.  That 
would  be  a  fault  of  method,  and  i)nvvufj.t]v  has  a  difiterent  origin  (see 


l66  THE    PSALMS. 

below).  Another  error  concerns  the  tense.  Kon.,  Wellh.,  Ba.  (following 
G  'A  2  S  J)  suppose  'Qi«J  to  refer  to  the  past,  though  certainly  Ba.  regards 
the  action  as  continuing  into  the  present.  Clearly  the  text  is  wrong. 
Hupf.  reads  oyDN  ;  Duhm,  0^:5^3^.  Both  retain  O-  All  this  is 
superficial.  The  Tj^wdfitjv  uvrovi  of  G  'A  is  much  better  ;  it  represents 
DD7ni<,  '  I  will  strike  them.'  But  even  this  is  not  original,  (i)  because 
'3  is  not  accounted  for,  and  (2)  because  it  is  God,  and  not  man,  who 
fights  and  who  conquers.  In  such  a  case  we  must  look  underneath  the 
traditional  readings.  The  true  reading  is  Dvl^^^m"'.  This  underlies 
both  D1!DSiJ<  (cp.  on  cxli.  5,  and  Cn'L  Bib.  on  Isa.  xxviii.  i)  and  D^OS 
(cp.  the  names  ^107^,  7i<''QJ7) ;  it  is  a  gloss  on  //.  19,  21,  23.  Those 
who  surround,  who  surround  like  bees,  and  who  flame  up  are  '  all  the 
nations  (round  about),'  i.e.  the  Jerahmeelites  ortN,  Arabians.  See  exeg. 
n.  One  question  still  remains,  if  the  pious  Jews  do  not '  mow  down '  or 
'  massacre '  their  enemies,  what  kind  of  action  do  they  take  ?  The 
answer  will  enable  us  to  account  for  O-  What  should  they  do  but  'call 
on  Yahwe's  name?     For  ''^  read  J<"lpSl  ;  cp.  cxvi.  4. 

21.     Read  DHillD    ■'J")13D"DH-     ^I  opens  v.   11   with  >i13D,  and 
:  •        •       T  : 

repeats  this  in  v.  12a,  whence  we  get  D''~)3"TD.  See,  however,  xviii.  6a. — 
23.    M  IDjri.     Read  ^-1^11   (cp.  T,  \^\bl)-     G  has   {v.  12)  invKkaadv  /xe 

wcrel  [jLtXiaaaL  Krjpiov  Koi  e^cKavdrjaav,  where  Krjplov  kol  e^eKavd.  really  repre- 
sents T1J,*II  1DJ^~Tj  for  T  JJT)  of  which  Kvp.  kql  is  the  equivalent,  is  merely  a 
misread  ^J)?1 ;  i.e.  ^1^2,,  a  marginal  correction  of  I^J^t,  found  its  way 
into  the  text  of  (}'s  Heb.  MS.  beside  IDJ?"!-  lyT  occurs  nowhere  in 
Pual,  and  'extinguished'  is  not  the  right  sense.  Houb.  has  already  said 
this.— Read  perhaps  D'^lipZ  (Ba.,  after  G). 

25.  Read  Tl^mj  nni^  (similarly  Kenn.,  Gr. ;  cp.  S).  G  coo-^fiy 
aveTpimr\v.     Konig  {Synf.,  §  324*^)  explains  M's  text  improbably. 

27  f.    Harmonized  in  M  with  the  already  corrupt  text  of  Ex.  xv.  2. — 

M  •'•Ijr.     Readnii.     See  on  xxviii.  8,  xlvi.  2.— M  jTir^T.     Read  >J-nT;;i ; 
•  T  •  \  t: •  •  t:  v: 

cp.  xlvi.  2,     Duhm,  Jl~1^3il. — 30.  Insert  i'/^l^J,  which  easily  fell  out  after 
T      :  T  :  . 

^y^tfy^ — 32.     M    nr.^i'^il  ;    difficult   and    improbable.       Read   perhaps 

T    •• 

''iJl^^irr.      V.  -[Gb  is  a  repetition. 

46.  Point  JIN'^SJ  (I^t.  XXX.  11),  with  Bit.  ;  cp.  G  'A  J  T.— 49  i.  See 
on  //.  3,  5,  7.  After  M's  TVIiV  ^3^<  (G  w  Kvpu)  stands  a  Pasek.  In  fact, 
these  and  the  following  words  are  corrupt.  This  accounts  for  the  strange 
fact  that  words  of  supplication  became  a  formula  of  thanksgiving  (cp. 
Mt.  xxi.  9).  The  true  words  are  words  of  thanksgiving.  They  became 
corrupt,  and   the  formula  used  at  the  Feast  of  Booths  was  harmonized 


PSALMS    CXVIII.,  CXIX.  167 

with  the  corrupt  text  of  the  psalm  from  which  the  formula  was  taken. 
Read  probably — 

V.  26  is  a  later  insertion  (see  above). 

51  f.    M  prefixes  ^:h  IK'^I  mn"'  I  bii.     This  statement,  'Yahwo  is 

T  ••••T- 

God,'  is  very  improbable  ;   7ii7}  or  rather  ^^M  would  be  more  natural. 

..  T  •    •• 

The  whole  clause  is  a  miswritten  form  of  "jnj^T  HDN  ^'?^»,  and  is  out  of 
place  here.  What  follows  (  1JT  Jin~1")DX)  is  a  most  amusing  editorial 
attempt  to  make  sense  of  an  indistinct  passage.  Lag.  {Psnlf.  Hier.  165) 
reads  D''21P2  for  D\"l3y2  (Lev.  xxiii.  40;  cp.  niiy  JH,  Buxtorf, 
Lex.  C/i.,  1659).  But  in  a  passage  so  full  of  suspicious  obscurities  we 
cannot  deal  with  an  isolated  corruption  ;  a  superficial  correction  throws 
us  back.     Nor  is  it  allowable  to  supply  ^y^^l"'  before  ip.     The  analogy  of 

other  equally  strange  passages  justifies  and  requires  a  thorough  re- 
arrangement and  correction.  The  fragments  of  the  true  text  have  been 
conjecturally  restored  by  the  ancient  editor.  It  is  for  us  to  apply  a  more 
methodical  method  of  conjecture  to  complete  the  fragments  which  a 
trained  eye  can  still  detect  in  the  ill-restored  text.     Read  certainly — 

•  ••.  :  T  :  :  - 


PSALM     CXIX. 

JriEXAMETERS.  Themc  :  the  lilessedness  of  a  life  ordered  in  accordance  with 
the  tdrd,  i.e.  with  the  revelation  of  the  divine  will  expressed  (l)  in  statutes,  com- 
mandments, and  ordinances,  (2)  in  judicial  rewards  and  punishments.  These  two 
forms  of  expression  are  practically  one,  for  the  rewards  and  punishments  are 
announced  in  principle,  and,  for  the  earlier  period,  related  as  facts,  in  the  same 
sacred  book  which  contains  the  statutes  and  their  prophetic  interpretations.  It  is 
a  remarkably  wide  conception  of  iord,  and  of  this  our  psalmist  is  not  unconscious, 
for  he  declares  admiringly  to  Yahwe,  after  speaking  of  the  expected  'end'  of  his 
foes  in  connexion  with  his  close  study  of  revelation,  '  Thy  commandment  is  very 
broad  '  {v.  96).  In  this  respect,  then,  it  is  plain  that  the  writer  cannot  justly  be 
accused  of  narrowness  of  mind.  That  he  is  ojjposed  to  the  admission  of  foi-eign 
ideas  into  the  religion  of  Vahwe  may  be  admitted.  The  traditional  text  makes 
him   speak   witli  repugnance   of  unstable  waverers  or  aKewTiKoi  (so  at  least   it 

is  usual  to  explain  D'^S^Di  ''.   113),   hut  more  probably  he  refers  to  heretical 

books  such  as  are  alluded  to  in  the  very  late  Epilogue  to  Ecclesiastes  (Eccles. 
xii.  12).  His  own  deepest  needs  are  fully  satisfied  by  the  /ord  which  forms  the 
kernel  of  the  Pentateuch,  and  which  is  interpreted  and  expanded  in  the  prophetic 
writings  (cp.  Ezr.  ix.  lO  f.),  and  his  faith  in  its  divine  origin  is  supported  by  the 
facts  of  the  history  of  Israel  and  of  the  '  nations  round  about,'  which  are  re- 
corded in  close  connexion  with  the  iord.  More  especially  he  is  influenced  by 
Deuteronomy  (cp.  Kirkpatrick,  Fsahiis,  p.  705).    Deuteronomic  ideas  and  phrases 


l68  THE    PSALMS. 

abound  ;  see  e.^.  Dt.  iv.  8  (singular  righteousness  of  the  law),  v.  33  (the  '  way '), 
vi.  7  (duty  of  bearing  witness  to  the  law),  viii.  3/;  (true  life),  viii.  19  (national 
existence  conditional  on  observance  of  the  law).  But  it  must  be  added  that  there 
is  no  imitation  properly  so  called  ;  the  ideas  have  developed  in  the  author's 
mind,  and  the  phrases  accordingly  have  assumed  a  fuller  meaning.  Nowhere  too 
has  Deuteronomy  such  an  expression  as  '■loving'  the  divinely  given  law. 
Doubtless,  Yahwc*  is  to  be  loved,  but  the  'statutes  and  ordinances'  are  viewed  in 
Deuteronomy  as  something  outside  of  Yahwe,  which  it  is  right  to  observe  as  a 
proof  of  'love'  to  him,  and  not  as  something  which  represents  or  symbolizes 
Yahwe,  and  which,  being  righteous  and  perfect  like  himself,  is  to  be  '  loved.' 
As  it  appears  to  me,  the  psalmist  has  a  true  spiritual  love  for  the  '  law  '  as 
.  representing  Yahwc.  It  is  often  said  that  his  work  contains  the  germ  of 
Pharisaic  legalism,  which  is  commonly  considered  a  very  unspiritual  thing.  But 
how  much  accurate  knowledge  have  we  of  Pharisaic  legalism  ?  Both  the 
evangelical  and  the  Rabbinical  evidence  have,  it  would  seem,  to  be  studied  afresh 
with  a  keener  and  a  more  exacting  criticism.  Meantime  scholars  will  continue 
to  follow  their  ])ias,  or  their  sense  of  probability,  and  my  own  bias  or  sense  of 
probability  leads  me  to  question  the  still  prevalent  opinion  very  strongly  (see  OP, 
p.  349)- 

The  arrangement  of  the  psalm  is  alphabetical ;  the  eight  lines  of  each  stanza 
begin  with  the  same  letter  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet  (cp.  Lam.  iii.).     That  the 

psalmist  does  not  speak  as  an  individual  is  certain.      In  v.  9  the  '  youth  '  ("IJ^J)  is 

not  the  writer,  but  any  young  member  of  the  community ;  the  writer  extols  the 
tord  on  the  ground  that  young  men  can  preserve  their  innocence  by  observing  it. 
Verse  lOO  cannot  be  appealed  to,  being  corrupt.  In  v.  141  it  is  the  community  that  is 
•of  no  account  and  despised,'  and  the  expressions  of  vv.  147  f.  represent  the 
feelings  and  habits  of  tlie  most  religious  members  of  the  community.  And  if  the 
correction  of  the  text  of  v.  83a  here  offered  hits  the  mark,  it  is  plain  that  Israel, 
and  not  any  individual  Israelite,  is  meant,  for  it  is  only  Israel  who  can  be 
intelligibly  represented  as  '  like  Eden-jerahmeel,'  a  district  in  the  Negeb  which  had 
lately  been  so  mercilessly  raided  and  laid  waste  as  to  have  become  as  proverbial 
in  its  wasteness  as  Sodom  in  the  older  period.  The  abundance  of  plural  class- 
names  also  points  in  this  direction — class-names  which  are  applied  partly  to  those 
with  whom  the  writer  himself  is  associated,  partly  to  those  who  are  on  the 
opposite  side,  including  among  the  latter  faithless,  paganizing  Israelites.     Note 

also  D^nii'  'princes'  (f.  23,  but  see  crit.  n.,   161),  i.e.  leading  officers  of  the 

oppressive  government  under  which  Israel  lived.  It  must  be  admitted,  certainly, 
that  in  some  verses  the  writer  distinguishes  himself  from  the  mass  of  faithful 
Israelites  (see  vv.  63,  74,  132).  Someiimes  therefore  he  speaks  in  the  character 
of  the  individual  pious  Israelite,  i.e.  any  and  every  one  who  faithfully  observes  the 
Law  ;  sometimes  as  the  personified  community.  Not  all  Israelites,  however,  are 
equally  advanced  in  spirituality  as  himself,  and  his  main  object  doubtless  is  to 
propagate  the  type  of  character  which  seems  to  him  the  highest,  especially  among 
the  rising  generation. 

The  reason  why  the  stanzas  consist  of  eight  lines  (verses)  each,  has  been 
discovered  by  D.  H.  Miiller  {SirophenbaH  11.  A'es/>onsio!t ,  1898,  pp.  54  ff.).  The 
psalmist  had  derived  from  a  kindred  psalm — the  19th — eight  synonyms  for  the 
conception  '  Word  of  God,'  and  it  occurred  to  him  to  impress  these  terms  on  his 
readers  by  introducing  them  all  into  each  stanza  of  his  work.      One  after  another 

these  eight  terms  occur  in  the  successive  lines  of  a  stanza.     They  are,  i.  m,'^J^  = 

\6yioi',  2.   "IQI  =  A({7os,  3.    Q'pn  =  S(Ka(ai/xaTO,  4.   jn^D  =  eVToA,at,  5.    D^tDSti'D 

=  KpinaTa,    6.    r\T\y  =:  fxapTvpia,    7.     Q^llpQ  =  iVToAo^,   8.    mi/l  =  vd/uoj.       It 

sometimes  happens  that  in  the  received  text  the  same  term  occurs  twice,  which 
involves  the  omission  of  one  of  the  eight  terms.  Consequently  we  are  justified, 
as  Midler  points  out,  in  emending  the  text  so  as  to  produce  a  complete  representa- 
tion of  the  terms.  Cp  this  scholar's  capital  restoration  in  xix.  11  (\o\.  i., 
P-  79)- 


PSALM    CXIX.  169 

ALEPH. 

1  Happy  those  that  are  of  blameless  life,  that  walk  in  Yahwe's 

law ! 

2  Happy  those  that  keep  his  admonitions,  that  seek  him  with 

their  whole  heart, 

3  Yea,  those   that  have  not  worked  iniquity,    but  walked  in 

his  words  ! 

4  Thou  hast  appointed  thy  behests  to  be  observed  continually. 

5  Ah  !  may  my  ways  be  firm,  that  I  may  observe  thy  statutes  ! 

6  Then  shall  I  not  be  ashamed,  when  I  regard  all  thy  com- 

mandments. 

7  I  will  thank  thee  with  an  upright  heart  when  I  have  learnt 

thy  righteous  ordinances. 

8  Thy  saying  will  I  observe  ;  forsake  me  not  utterly. 

BETH. 

9  Whereby  can  a  youth  be  innocent  ?     In  taking  heed  to  his 

path  according  to  thy  word. 

10  With  my  whole  heart  do  I  seek  thee  ;  let  me  not  wander 

from  thy  commandments. 

1 1  Thy  saying  do  I  treasure  within   my  heart,  that  I  may  not 

sin  against  thee. 

12  Blessed  art  thou,  O  Yahwe  I   [for  thou  wilt]   teach  me  thy 

statutes. 

1 3  With  my  lips  do  I  rehearse  all  the  ordinances  of  thy  mouth. 

14  In  the  way  of  thine  admonitions  I  have  greater  joy  than  in 

all  kinds  of  riches. 

15  I  muse  upon  thy  behests,  and  regard  thy  paths. 

16  With  thy  laws  I  solace  myself ;  I  do  not  forget  thy  word. 

GIMEL. 

17  Grant  to  thy  servant  that  I   may  live  ;  then  will  I  observe 

thy  word. 

18  Uncover  mine  eyes  that  I  may  behold  wondrous  things  out 

of  thy  law. 

19  A  sojourner  am  I  in  the  land  ;  hide  not  thy  saying  from  me. 

20  My  soul  cries  out   longingly  towards   thine   ordinances    at 

all  times. 

21  Thou  hast  threatened    the    proud;    cursed    are    those    that 

wander  from  thy  commandments. 


170  THE    PSALMS. 

22  Roll  away  from  me  insult  and   contempt,   for    thy  behests 

have  I  kept. 

23  Even  if  the  Arabians  ^  stand   in   array,   thy   servant  muses 

upon  thy  statutes. 

24  Moreover  thine  admonitions  are  my  solace,  and  thy  statutes 

are  my  counsellors. 

DALETH. 

25  My   soul    cleaves   to    the    dust  ;    revive    me,    according    to 

thy  word. 

26  I  recounted  my  ways,  and   thou  didst  test  them  (?)  ;  teach 

me  thy  statutes. 

27  Make  me  to  understand    the    way  of  thy  behests,    so   will 

I  muse  on  thy  wonders. 

28  My  soul  weeps  from   sadness,  raise  me  up  according  to  thy 

promise. 

29  Remove  from  me  the  way  of  falseness,  and  graciously  give 

me  thy  law. 

30  I  have  chosen  the  way  of  faithfulness  ;  thine  ordinances  have 

I  not  forgotten, 

31  I  cleave  to  thine  admonitions;    O  Yahwe !    make  me  not 

ashamed. 

32  I  have  pleasure  in  the  way  of  thy  commandments,  for  thou 

enlargest  my  heart. 

HE. 

33  Show  me,  O  Yahwe  !  the  way  of  thy  statutes ;  be  so  gracious, 

because  of  Jerahmeel. 

34  Give    me   understanding,    that   I    may   keep    thy   law,  yea, 

observe  it  with  my  whole  heart. 

35  Make  me  to  tread  in  the  path  of  thy  commandments,  for 

therein  do  I  delight. 

36  Incline  my  heart  to  thine  admonitions,  and  not  to  Ishmael. 

37  Turn  away  mine  eyes  that  they  see  not  vanity  ;  revive  me 

by  thy  word. 

38  Confirm  to  thy  servant  thy  promise,  which  belongs  to  thy 

covenant. 

39  Remove  the   insult   which    I   dread,    for    thine    ordinances 

are  good. 

40  Behold,   I   long   after    thy   behests  ;    in    thy   righteousness 

revive  me. 

'  Princes. 


PSALM    CXIX.  171 

VAU. 

41  And  let  thy   kindnesses  come  to  me,  O  Yahwe  !  thy  deli- 

verance according  to  thy  promise. 

42  And  I  shall  make  answer  to  the  insulters  of  Arabia,  for  I 

trust  in  thy  word. 

43  And  snatch  not   the  word    of  truth    from   my   mouth,    for 

I  have  waited  for  thine  ordinances. 

44  And  I  will  observe  thy  law  continually,  for  ever  and  ever. 

45  And  I  shall  walk  in  ample  space,  for  1  study  thy  behests. 

46  And  I  will   speak   of  thine  admonitions  before   Jerahmeel, 

unashamed. 

47  And  I  will  solace  myself  with    thy  commandments    which 

I  love  exceedingly, 

48  And  will   lift   up  my  hands  toward  thy  statutes,  and  muse 

upon  thy  statutes. 

ZAIN. 

49  Think   on  thy  word  to  thy  servant,  seeing  that  thou  hast 

given  me  hope. 

50  This  is  my  comfort   in    my  misery — that   thy  promise    has 

kept  me  in  life. 

51  The   proud    have  flouted   me  sorely  ;  from  thy  law  I  have 

not  swerved. 

52  I  think  on  thy  judgments  +which  are+  of  old,  O  Yahwe  ! 

and  get  comfort. 

53  Terror  has  seized  me  because   of  the  wicked   that   forsake 

thy  law. 

54  Thy  statutes  are  the  themes  of  my  song  in  my  lodging-place. 

55  I  think  on  thy  name  in  Jerahmeel,  and  observe  thy  law. 

56  This  +good+  has  been  mine  that  I  have  kept  thy  behests. 

HETH. 

57  My  portion,  O  Yahwe  !  I  say,  is  to  observe  thy  words. 

58  I  entreat  thy  favour  with  my  whole  heart  ;  have  pity  on  me, 

according  to  thy  saying. 

59  I  form  a  plan  for  my  ways,  and  turn  my  feet  towards  thine 

admonitions. 

60  I  make  haste  and  delay  not  to  keep  thy  commandments. 

61  The   snares  of  the   wicked    hunt    me  ;    thy    law   I    do    not 

forffet. 


1/2  THE    PSALMS. 

62  At   midnight   I  rise  to  give   thanks  to  thee  because  of  thy 

righteous  ordinances. 

63  I  am  a  companion  of  all  those  that  fear  thee  and  of  those 

that  observe  thy  behests. 

64  Of  thy  lovingkindness,  O  Yahwe !   the  earth  is  full  ;  teach 

me  thy  statutes. 

TETH. 

65  Thou  hast  dealt  well  with  th}'  servant,  O  Yahwe  !  according 

to  thy  word. 

66  Train   me  to  judgment  and    perception,   for  I    believe    thy 

commandments, 

67  Before   I   had   suffering   I   erred,    but    now    I    observe   thy 

saying. 

68  Thou  art  good,  and  doest  good;  teach  me  thine  ordinances. 

69  The  proud  fasten  lies  upon  me  ;  I,  with  +my+  whole  heart 

keep  thy  behests. 

70  Gross  like  fat  is  their  heart  ;  I,  +however,+  take  my  solace  in 

thy  law. 

71  Well   is    me   that   I    was   afflicted,  that  I  might  learn  thy 

statutes. 

72  The  admonitions  of  thy  mouth  are  worth  more  for  me  than 

thousands  of  gold  and  silver. 

YOD. 

73  Thy  hands  made  me  and  prepared  me  ;  give  me  understand- 

ing, that  I  may  learn  thy  commandments. 

74  Let  those  that  fear  thee  see  me  and  rejoice,  because  I  have 

waited  for  thy  word. 

75  I  know,  O  Yahwe  !  that  thy  judgments  are   righteous,  and 

that  in  faithfulness  thou  hast  afflicted  me. 

76  O  let  thy  kindness  be  +present+  to  comfort  me,  according  to 

thy  saying  to  thy  servant. 

77  Let  thy  compassion  come  to  me  that  I  may  live,  for  thy  law 

is  my  solace. 

78  Let  the  proud  be  ashamed,  for  they  oppress  me  ;  as  for  me, 

I  muse  on  thy  behests. 

79  Let  those  of  Jerahmeel   be  ashamed,  but   [let]   those  that 

know  thine  admonitions  [rejoice]. 

80  Let  my  heart  be   blameless  in   thy  statutes,  that  I  be  not 

ashamed. 


PSALM    CXIX.  173 


81  For  thy  deliverance  longs  my  soul;  for  thy  word  I  wait. 

82  Mine  eyes  long  for  thy  saying,  while  I  ask,  When  wilt  thou 

comfort  me  ? 

83  For  though  I  am  become  like  Eden-jerahmeel,  thy  statutes 

do  I  not  forget. 

84  How  many  are  the  days  of  thy  servant  ?     When  wilt  thou 

do  judgment  on  my  persecutors  ? 

85  The    proud  have  digged   pits   for    me,    who   [walk  not]   in 

thy  law. 

86  All  thy  commandments  are  sure  ;  faithlessly  they  persecute 

me  ;  help  me. 

87  They  had  almost  made  an  end  of  me  in  the  land,  but   I 

forsook  not  thy  behests. 

88  Revive   me,    according   to    thy   lovingkindness,    and   I   will 

observe  the  ordinance  of  thy  mouth. 

LAMED. 

8q     For  ever  art  thou,  O  Yahwe !  thy  word  is  fixed  in  heaven. 

90  For  all  ages  is  thy  promise  ;    thou    didst  establish  it,    and 

it  stood. 

91  Jerahmeel  stands  +appointed+  for  thy  judgments  ;  for  [he  is] 

thy  servant. 

92  Had  not  thy  law  been  my  solace,  I  should  have  perished  in 

my  misery, 

93  Never  will  I  forget  thy  behests,  for  by  them  thou  hast  kept 

me  in  life. 

94  Thine  am  I,  deliver  me,  for  thy  precepts  do  I  study. 

95  The  wicked  wait  for   me  to    destroy  me  ;    +but+   to   thine 

admonitions  I  give  close  heed. 

96  To  Ishmael  I  see  an  end  ;   thy  commandment  is  very  broad. 

MEM. 

97  How    I    love    th}'    law  !    it    is    the    theme    I   muse    upon 

continually. 

98  Thy  commandment  makes  me  wiser  than  the  Arabians,  for 

it  is  mine  +to  study+  for  ever. 

99  I   have    more    insight    than    the    Jerahmeelite.-;,    for    thine 

admonitions  are  the  theme  of  my  musing. 

100  I    have    more    understanding    than    the    Kenizzites,    for   I 

keep  thy  statutes. 


174  THE    PSALMS. 

loi     I  have  withheld  my  foot  from   every  evil  path,  that  I  may 
heed  thy  word. 

102  From   thine  ordinances  I  have  not  departed,  for  thou  hast 

taught  me. 

103  How  smooth  are  thy  sayings  to  my  palate  !   +sweeter+  than 

honey  to  my  mouth. 

104  Through  thy  behests  I  get  understanding  ;  therefore  I  hate 

every  false  path. 

NUN. 

105  Thy  word  is  a  lamp  to  my  foot,  and  a  light  to  my  path. 

106  I   have    sworn,    and    will   make    it   good,    to   observe    thy 

righteous  ordinances. 

107  I  am  greatly  afflicted  ;  O  Yah  we  !  have  pit}'  on  me,  accord- 

ing to  thy  word. 

108  The    freewill    offerings    of    my   mouth    do    thou    accept, 

O  Yahwe !  and  teach  me  thine  ordinances. 

109  My  soul    is   continually  in    my  hand,  but  I   do  not  forget 

thy  law. 
no     The  wicked  have  laid  a  snare  for  me,  but  I  have  not  erred 
from  thy  behests. 

111  Thine  admonitions  are  my  heritage  for  ever,  for  they  are 

the  joy  of  my  heart. 

112  I  have  inclined  my  heart  to  perform  thy  statutes,  because  of 

Jerahmeel. 

SAMECH. 

113  Heathen  books  do  I  hate,  but  thy  law  do  I  love. 

114  Thou  art  my  covert  and  my  shield;  I  wait  on  for  thy  word. 

115  Away  from  me,  ye  evil-doers  ;  I  will  keep  the  command- 

ments of  my  God. 

116  Uphold  me,  according  to  thy  promise,  that  I  may  live,  and 

let  me  not  be  disappointed  of  m}'  hope. 

1 1 7  Support   me,    that   I  may   be   delivered,   and   may   solace 

myself  continually  in  thy  statutes.    . 

118  Thou  rejectest  all  those  that  wander  from  thy  statutes,  for 

their  device  is  falsehood. 

119  Thou    accountest    all    the   wicked    in    the    land   as   dross; 

therefore  I  love  thine  admonitions. 

1 20  My  flesh  shudders  for  dread  of  thee,  and  I  am  afraid  of  thy 

judgments. 


PSALMS    CXIX.  175 

AVIN. 

121  I  have  practised  justice  and  righteousness;  leave  me  not  to 

mine  oppressors. 

122  Pledge  thy  word  for  good  ;  let  not  the  proud  oppress  me. 

123  Aline  eyes   long  for  thy    succour,    and    for    thy    righteous 

promise. 

124  Deal  with  thy  servant  according  to  thy  lovingkindness,  and 

teach  me  thy  statutes. 

125  I  am  thy  servant,  give  me  understanding,  that  I  may  know 

thine  admonitions. 

126  It  is  time  for  Yahwe  to  act ;  they  have  made  void  thy  law. 

127  Therefore,   I   love   thy   commandments    above    gold,   yea, 

above  fine  gold. 

128  Therefore,  I  observe  thy  behests  ;  every  false  way  do  I  hate, 

PE. 

129  Marvellous  are  th}' admonitions  ;  therefore  m}' soul  observes 

them. 

130  The  interpretation   of  thy  words  enlightens,  gives  under- 

standing to  the  simple. 

131  I  open  my  mouth  wide  and  pant ;  +even+  so  long  I  for  thy 

commandments. 

132  Turn  toward  me,  and  have  pit}^  upon  me,  according  to  the 

right  of  those  that  love  thy  name. 

133  Make  my  steps  firm  by  thy  saying,  and  let  no  wickedness 

have  no  dominion  over  me. 

134  Set  me  free  from  the  oppression  of  Aram,  so  will  I  observe 

thy  behests. 

135  Make  thy  face  to  shine  upon  thy  servant,  and  teach  me  thy 

statutes. 

136  Mine   eyes   run    down   in  gusliing    streams,   because    men 

observe  not  thy  law. 

SADE. 

137  Righteous    art    thou,    O    Yahwe  !     and     just    are    thine 

ordinances. 

138  The  ordinances  that  thou  hast  appointed  are  righteous  and 

very  sure. 

139  My  zeal  consumes  me,  because  my  foes  have  forgotten  thy 

word. 


176  THE    PSALMS. 

140  Thy  promise  is  well-tried,  and  thy  servant  loves  it. 

141  I  am  of  no  account  and  despised  ;  thy  behests  I  have  not 

forgotten. 

142  Thy   righteousness    is    everlastingly    right,    and    thy    law 

is  sure. 
14^     Distress  and  straitness  have  laid  hold  on  me  ;    thy  com- 
mandments are  my  solace. 

144  Right  are  thine  admonitions  everlastingly  ;  give  me  under- 

standing that  I  may  live. 

KOPH. 

145  I  call  with  +my+  whole  heart ;  answer  me,  O  Yah  we  !  thy 

statutes  will  I  keep. 

146  I    call   upon   thee,  deliver   me,   and   I   will   observe  thine 

ordinances. 

147  I   arise    in  the  twilight  and  cry  for  help,  waiting  on  for 

thy  word. 

148  Mine  eyes  forestall  the  night-watches,  that  I  may  muse  on 

thy  promises. 

149  Hear   my  voice,   according   to  thy  kindness;    O   Yahwe  ! 

revive  me,  according  to  thy  justice. 
I  ;o     They  draw  nigh  that  persecute  me  with  outrages,  that  have 

gone  far  from  thy  law. 
151     Thou   art   near,    O   Yahwe  !    and   all   thy   commandments 

are  true. 
1^2     From  of  old  I  know  from  thine  admonitions  that  thou  hast 

founded  them  for  ever. 

KESH. 

i;3     Behold  my    misery,    and    rescue   me,    for  I  do    not   forget 

thy  law. 
I  ::4     Conduct  my  cause,  and  redeem  me  ;  according  to  thy  word 

revive  me. 

155  Far  from  the  wicked  is  +thy+  deliverance,  for  they  seek  not 

thy  statutes. 

156  Plenteous  is  thy  compassion,  O  Yahwe!  according  to  thy 

judgments  revive  me. 

1:57  Many  are  my  persecutors  and  my  foes;  from  thine  ad- 
monitions I  have  not  swerved. 

i:;8  I  beheld  the  traitors,  and  had  loathing,  because  they 
observed  not  thy  commandments. 


PSALM    CXIX.  177 

159     Behold    how    I    love    thy   precepts  ;     revive    me,    Yahwe  ! 

according  to  thy  lovingkindness. 
I  bo     The  sum  of  thy  words  is  truth  ;  all  thy  righteous  ordinances 

are  for  ever. 

SHIX. 

161  Princes    persecute    me    without    a    cause;    because    of   thy 

words  my  heart  throbs  +for  jo3'+. 

162  I  rejoice  at  thy  promise  as  one  that  has  found  great  spoil. 

163  Falsehood  I  hate  and  abhor  ;  thy  statutes  do  I  love. 

164  Seven  times  in  the  day  do  I  praise  thee,  because  of  thy 

righteous  ordinances. 

165  Great  prosperity  have  the    lovers  of  thy  law  ;    for    them 

there  is  no  +stone  of+  stumbling. 

166  I  hope  for  thy  deliverance,  O  Yahwe!   th}' commandments 

have  I  done. 

167  My  soul  has  observed  thine  admonitions  ;  dearly  I  love  them. 

168  I  have  observed  thy  precepts  and  thine  ordinances  ;  for  all 

my  wa3's  are  before  thee. 

TAU. 

169  Let  my  wail  come  near  thy  presence  ;  have  pity  on  me,  O 

Yahwe  !  according  to  thy  word. 

170  Let  my  supplication  come  before  thee  ;  rescue  me  according 

to  thy  promise. 

171  Let  my  lips  gush  out  with  praise,  because  thou  teachest  me 

th}'  statutes. 

172  Let    my    tongue   sing    of    thy   faithfulness,    for    all    thine 

admonitions  are  right. 

173  Let  thy  hand  be  4-present+ to  help  me,  for  I  have  chosen 

thy  behests. 

1 74  I  long  for   thy  deliverance,  O  Yahwe  !  and  th)-  law  is  my 

solace. 

175  Let    my   soul    live,    that    it    may  praise    thee,  and  let  thy 

judgments  help  me. 

176  I   wander;     seek    thy   servant,    for   I    do   not    forget    thy 

commandments. 

Critical  Notes.     3.  For  V3-II2  read  Vl^ia  (U.  H.  Miillcr,  Duhni). 

—4.  Read  D1!::t:>'?   (Bi.,    Du.),  widi    l-'Qn   (Gr.,    as  .\lvi.    2).— 8.    For 
t:  T  :  .  T 

•^^ipn-JlJ^  read  ^riH^Nt    (Mii.,    Du.).— 9.    Read  1^>J   n3r,    '(Whereby 
II.  ' '  N 


178  THE    PSALMS. 

shall  a  youth  lie  innocent,'  or  '  obtain  merit '  (the  New  Heb.  sense).  So 
Halevy.  Continue,  in"}N"jn}>}  lb\L'b--i2.  Read  'pia^Jl  ^3  ,  as  z/. 
171/;  (Gr.).— 14.  For  '?y3  read  ^y:2  (We.,  Du.).— 16.  Read  Tj-jHlim 
(Mil.,  Du.).— 19.  Read  "^rinQN  (Mu.).  — 20.  HD^:) ,  'is  crushed' 
(Aram.)?  'studies'   (cp.    T,    Prov.    iv.    19;   T.  Jon.   Dt.    li.  19)?     Hitz., 

n?^i:i  (cp.  G,  Prov.  xvii.  22).     Rather  m^':i   (sec  on  xlii.  2).— 22.  Read 
T    :t  t-:t 

Si)  (Ew.,  Hi.,  Bo.,  Gr.,  Kau.,  &c.),  and  "?|nip3  . 

23rt.  'Yea,  princes  sit  and  talk  together  against  me'  (Driver).  Duhm 
thinks  this  absurd,  and  omits  ^3.,  thus  turning  the  hostile  plotters  into 
students.  But  1"131J  cannot  mean  '  study.'  ^yl^''  probably  comes  from 
^^\j>[/T<]  ;  131,  as  in  some  other  passages,  from  ^iy  (3,' and  "1  con- 
founded). Un'\D  is  a  gloss.  Read  0^31^"^^  MTD-"  DJl  •— 24<5.  G, 
Kill  al  avixIBovXiai  fxov  Tci  St(cata)/xara  aov.  Insert  ^^pHl  (so  virtually  Bii., 
Kau.).  This  makes  D^pH  occur  twice  in  one  stanza,  but  since  I^JTTJ,' 
occurs  in  a,  may  be  allowed.  V.  24  is,  in  fact,  a  paraphrase  of  7',  22^. — 
25.  Here  and  elsewhere  Gr.  would  read  ^Jjn  (as  t'?'.  29,  58).  Cp.  on  v. 
107. — 26.  M  '2337jT1  •     If  the  'ways  '  which  the  speaker  recounts  are  his 

practices  or  courses  of  action  (cp.  7'.  168/^),  we  expect  rather  Djn3P'1 
'  ••  T  :    .  - 

(cp.  xxvi.  2).— 28.    Read   Tjrnp>^3  (Mii.,  Du.).— 30.  U  Ti'M^ .     Read 

^P^HD^    S"?  (G).-32.  ForV-nN  read  nl:-|^<  (We.).  — 33.    M    n-JliiNT 
.   .  -  T  '       T  •.•:•.•  T  vt:  V  : 

2pV  ■  3py  is  very  puzzling.  G  here  diaTravrvs,  cp.  T,  hiT,';3J  iy ,  7'.  1 12 
K31D  li?  (cp.  Onk.,  Gen.  iii.  15,  N3"1D=  Heb.  3py).  In  7'.  112,  how- 
ever, (j,  81'  dvTa^fi.\j/iv.  J  \itxQ  per  vestigium,  but  in  7'.  112  propter 
{(Eterna)}i)  rciributionein.  /)Z?j5  and  Ges.-Bu.,  'to  the  end,'  'for  ever'; 
the  former  compares  Sirach  xvi.  3,  where  JlTZp^  =  rfirTN  .  This  sense, 
however,  is  at  any  rate  improbable  in  the  O.T.,  and  no  one,  except  under 
compulsion,  would  think  of  giving  it  either  here  or  in  v.  112.  In  both 
places  the  editor  has  had  to  do  his  best  with  a  corrupt  text.  Read  here 
probably, ':)i^?2nT  3py  ^<r^^")  ;  cp.  v.  9,  xxvii.  II.— 37.  M  ^3113. 
Read  "11313  (Mu.,  Du.).— 38.  M  "^Jlll^'p  lli^N^  ;  sense  not  clear. 
Read  probably  ^jn"'13'7  lli'N.— 4i-     I^ead  perhaps  "^JlpPT  ''J^<31  (G, 

Du.)  ;  but  cp.  V.   77-— 42.  M  131  "'Blil.     G  S  J   '1    ^3lh .       Rather 

T  T     .    :  -    : 

21V  ^Siri  (cp.   on  7'.   23).     See  xlii.    11,  xliv.   17.— 43.  Omit  1N.'2"117 
y^    ••    :  :       - 

(Bi.,  Gr.,  Du.),  and  attach  it  to  v.  47.-46.  M  DO'^D  IJIJ  •  IMissionary 
journeys  to  foreign  courts  1  Read  'pSI^^ni^  lij  .  Cp.  on  DM'??<  'J, 
cxxxviii.  I.  Jerahmeel  may  mock,  may  insult  (7'.  42)  ;  Israel  will  persist 
in  asserting  the  unique  merits  of  its  'law'  (cxlvii.  20). — 47.  Append 
li^Q"lJ^  (from  V.  43)— 48-  Omit  ''jl3rTN  "WtH.  (repetition  from  v.  Al)-— 
53.    (13^  "^T .     'Of    obscure   origin;    perhaps    a    development    of    ►^7 ' 


PSALM    CXIX.  Ijg 

(Ges.-Bu.).  A^ain  in  xi.  6,  Lam.  v.  lo  ;  also  in  the  Hebrew  Sirach, 
xliii.  i6  (if  it  is  not  miswiitten  for  ^'tybv ,  "whirlwind,'  see  marg.).  The 
word  seems  to  have  come  from  /ll^^D  ;  the  corruption  probably  fiiit 
arose  in  xi.  6,  and  from  thence  was  copied  into  Lam.  v.  lo  and  Ps.  cxix. 
by   cultivators   of  literary    Hebrew.— 55.    M   n'7^'?3  •       In  the  night  of 

trouble.''  But  as  in  Ixxvii.  8,  Isa.  xxvi.  9,  we  should  probably  read 
'?^}!2^T"1''2• — tS.  S  presupposes  ■»Jin  ;  cp.  on  -'.  .?5.  Wellh.  adopts  this. 
— 61.  Read  "'JIT^. — 65.  Omit  21tO,  -''s  an  intrusion  from  t'.  65  (so 
Wellh.). 

68.  Read  Ty-[ODrD  (Mii.). —70.  Read  TJ-ri'i;;  (Mii.)— 79.  iM  ^2n'^ 
^■"NT"  '*'? ;  sense  not  clear.  Cp.  the  corrected  text  of  Ix.  6a,  and  read 
D^'^i^^nT  W2^^  ;  append  ^li:2'i;'  (cp.  cix.  28).— 83.  M  "niDpa  1»^JJ3 , 
'  like  a  wine-skin  in  the  smoke  '  (but  G  2  S  J  presuppose  ntJZ)- 
Sense  not  clear  (see  Hupf.).     Read  certainly   '^'SDHT  11^3-      'Edei.' 

(see  on  2  K.  xix.  12)  was  a  district  in  the  Negeb,  which  a  N.  Arabian 
king  in  Hezekialrs  time  laid  waste.  Tresumably  this  desolation  had 
been  renewed  by  some  Arabian  foe  some  time  before  the  psahiiist 
wrote.  1110^33 ,  like  nTlJDp ,  comes  from  '?N::Dn~)"'  (i2  and  JO  con- 
founded).—85.    Read  oS"T  lDmj"12  N''?  irN"  (Gr.). 

89.  Read  nnSt  D'?*i:i?t>  (S  ;  Gr.).— 90.  Read  "^riluJ^J  (Mii.,  Du.j.— 
Read  Hj^JJ^S ,  and  (with  Du.)  omit  y~1S ,  a  misleading  insertion 
suggested   by   D'O'tiO    (''•    89).— 91.    'SI    QPrT    MD^  ■      What    is    the 

subject?  and  why  not  DVil'lJ'?  "IL'O^  is  also  obscure,  and  the 
following    clause    quite    unintelligible.  —  '^"'131*     7311     ''3  — •  altogether 

unintelligible.     .Surely  we  must  read  [^<'l^]  ^3  ':'hJ?3nT  IT^V  'l'''i^BV'2b 

TT^3J>.     QVn   and    73   both   come   from   fragments   of    'm^  ;    cp.   on 

□Vn~73)  xliv.  23,  Ivi.  2.  The  key  to  the  meaning  of  the  passage  will  be 
found  in  Hab.  i.  12.  The  Q^DBtt^D  are  the  interventions  of  the  divine 
Judge  (t'T'.  52,  75,  120),  which,  like  the  Scriptures,  are  revelations  of  the 
divine  will. 

94.     For  ^^"T|?3  read  'I'^pll  ;  G  ^^Kalo}f^aTd  aov.     So  Mil.,  Du. 

96.     M  rnjpr'?2b-     .-According  to  most,  a  aV.  Xcy.  =  Hw^Pi,  which 
T  :    .       T  :  "^  •  :   - 

indeed  Sicgfr.-Sta.  would  read.  The  meaning  would  be  that  all  earthly 
perfection  is  limited  and  perishable,  whereas  the  divine  revelation,  like 
its  Giver  (Job  xi.  9),  is  unlimited  and  eternal.  G  has  trui/TeXeia(s'),  which 
in  Job  xxvi.  10  stands  for  n^73n.  2  gives  the  strange  equivalent 
KnraaKfvrjd),  which  in  Ezek.  xxiii.  6  represents  Ph^D  (M  JllDD).  Is 
there  no  way  out  of  the  quagmire  of  improbability?     Let   us  look  at  the 


l80  THE    PSALMS. 

context.  There  is.  The  rest  of  the  stanza  is  full  of  references  to  Israel's 
danger  from  its  foes,  who  are  stated  to  be  Jerahmeelites.  What  we 
expect  here  is  some  significant  word  of  faith,  justifying  the  psalmist  in 
passing  on  to  a  somewhat  ditierent  mood.  The  word  yp  gives  us  an 
eloquent  suggestion.  It  reminds  us  of  xxxix.  5,  which,  according  to  the 
most  probable  view,  runs, '  Make  me,  [I  pray,]  to  know  the  end  (yp)  of  the 
Jerahmeelites.'  This  constant  petition  of  the  Jewish  heart  has,  to  our 
psalmist  at  least,  been  answered,  and  it  is  through  the  written  Tora  (cp. 
xciv.  12  f.)  that  the  consolatory  and  uplifting  assurance  has  come  that 
the  '  end  '  of  the  oppressors  is  at  hand.  It  is,  therefore,  exegetically,  very 
probable  that  nbjD/D  covers  over  some  important  ethnic.  Is  there 
such  an  ethnic  as  might  possibly  become  'n~73  ?  There  is  one,  and 
one  only— it  is  '^J^^r^Ii*''  (a  synonym  of  '7X*jn"l^).  biD.is  a  fragment  of  a 
dittographed  n'?DJl ,  and  may,  therefore,  be  left  out  of  account.  n'?Dj~l , 
in  accordance  with  parallels,  may  represent  either  D73n  or  □'7pr)-  Now 
the   well-known    ethnic    72.D    is    an   ancient    popular   distortion   (which 

attained  an  independent  existence)  of  t'hiJ'QU^'' ;  we  also  find  in  Ezek. 

xxiii.  6  a  pair  of  corruptions  of  'QZ'^  one  of  which  is  j~l7Dn  (^see  Cr//. 

Bib.  ad  loc).    ^T)n  is  only  known  from  Dan.  \.  25  (see  Crif.  B//>.)  where 

it  springs  from  ^r^T^  {i-e-  b'ii.yUV  ;  cp.  on  t'iQn  ,   i  S.  xx.  27).     Read, 

therefore,  yp  ''7T'^^■^  D''':'S'DnT''? . 
' '..      .     .    T        •••::-• 

98-100.     Duhm  thinks  it  '  strange  that  Olshausen  could  suppose  a 

reference  to  the  teachers  of  a  foreign  faith.'     '  If  so,'  he  adds, '  who  should 

the  grey-headed  men  (t'.  100)  be,  whom  the  writer  surely  took  from  Job 

xxxiii.  6  ff.,  and  who  must  have  been  as  good  Jews  as  himself?'     Both 

Olshausen  and  Duhm  are  wrong,  but  Duhm's  error  is  the  greater.     The 

wise  men  whom  the  writer  refers  to  (probably  by  a  conscious  archaism) 

can  hardly  have  been  religious   teachers,  but   foreigners  (N.  Arabians) 

they  certainly  were.     In  the  chief  productions  of  Israelitish  '  wisdom  '  we 

find  Jerahmeelite  sages  (see  Prov.x.  i,xxiv.  23,  xxv.  i,  xxx.  i,  xxxi.  i);  cp. 

also  2  S.  xxiii.  i.and  for  a  brief  but  clear  statement  of  N.  Arabian  wisdom 

I  K.  V.  10-12  [iv.  29-31],  and  on  all  these  passages  see  Crit.  BiO.).     The 

opening  words  in  7'.  98,  ?'.  99,  and  ?'.   100  respectively  are  □^3'^^'^2  , 

D'':'NpnTQ ,  and  D'-np^-— 100.  Read  Tj^pH  (Mil.). 

103.  Read  Tj^n'irpS"  (G,  Hitz.,  Del.,  Bil.,  A:c.).— 105.  Read  Tynir^i^ 
(Mii.).— ic8.  Read  "^'jliikQ  (Mil.,  Du.).— 1 11.  Read  probably  Tl'^m  (J, 
l)u.).— 112.  Read  '^N^'^ni"'  3pr  (see  on  7-.  2,3)- 

113.     M  D'3VD  •     '  The  exact  meaning  was  not  even  known  to  the 

ancients.  According  to  i  K.  xviii.  21  those  Israelites  are  presumably 
meant  who  vacillated  between  tlie  religion  of  Yahwe  and  heathenism  ' 
(Bii.).  But  D''Si^D  is  corrupt  (see  Crit.  Bib.).  G's  Trapai/o/^ovs  suggests 
to  Griitz  D"'IOD  ;  cp.  ci.  3,  where,  however,  again  the  reading  is  disputab'e 


PSALMS    CXIX.,     CXX.  l8l 

(see  ad  loc).  Metre  suggests  that  D^Si^D  has  arisen  by  the  combination 
of  two  imperfectly  written  words.  Something  characteristic  of  heathenism 
(cp.  vv.  104,  128,  163)  must  be  meant.  A  possible  reading  would  be 
D'Dy  nSD  ;  cp.  introd. 

117.  For  r\];!V'i^  I'ead  '^'lD)jr\'D'i^  (as  vv.  16,  47).  So  G  .S  J  T  ; 
Gr.,  Dii.  ^  '   '  "'  '  '  " 

1 18.  Read  "rjnipDr.:  (Mii.,  Du.},  and  perhaps  D/T'yiri  (G  e  E'  S  J ), 

an  Aramaism.     So  Du.— 119.  Read  D2^tl  ('"A  2  J  ;  Ba.)  ;  Bi.,  "•j'^n'^n  , 

T  :  -  .  •  :  -  • 

and  Du.,  ^J13.I£'n ,  both  following  G,  and  omitting  ]37  . 

122.  Al  ^I3y.  Rather  ':]~)21  (Mii.,  Du,).  Illl  ought  to  occur  in 
the  stanza. 

128.      Read    'r\']:2V    T"'^P3''^3    (Nowack).       Ba.,     Du.,    'D^'bDb 
•    :  -  T        '    V      .       T  '  T  : 

T\'-\]^i    (see  G  J),  supplying  Wyti  from  />  ;  Hal.  ^i^  mpD  ~b2  • 

130.  M  nnS,  the  pointing  to  indicate  a  derived  meaning,  viz. 
'  interpretation.'    Too  improbable.    Read  "IJID  (Gr.). 

131.  Read  "TI^Nn  (Gr.)  ;  cp.  v.  40. — For  "3  read  ]3  . 

134.     Read  a^^<■— 135.    Read  "Tiap':'   (Gr.).  — 137.    If   before  the 
T-:  :  TT 

plural  "J-IDSI^D  is  improbable.  Read  U^lf^  (We.),  or  -):^"»  (Du.).— 
138.  Read  Tj-'pn  (Mii.).— 146.  Read  '^HlpS  (AIu.). 

150.     Read  -311  ,  Gr.,  Ba.,  Kau.,  We.,  Du.,  after  G  2  S  J. 

155.     Read  nptll  (Isa.  lix.    11).— 15S.    Read    ^""jliiJ.tD   (Alii.).— 160. 

Read  inni  (C,  Gr!)^and  "'IDDli^^^  (G,  Du.) 
'    V  T  :  ••  :    :   • 

163.  Read  rt>;^n  (Mii.)— 169.  Read  -J^H  or  ^yn  (Gr.  ;  cp.  S).— 
172.  Read  ^jlJI^J^  (Gr.)  and  ^''jlT;!?  (Mu.). 

176.  .-\s  metre  shows,  something  must  be  superfluous.  Bickell 
omits  O  liy^"  and  reads  -Jll^pn  ;  Duhm  omits  IQJ*  H'^VD.  Duhm  is 
right,  but  does  not  account  for  the  existence  of  l^N  Hti'D .  He  calls  it 
a  gloss.  The  truth  is,  however,  that  it  has  arisen  out  of  a  dittographed 
113;?  Wp2 . 

PSALM     CXX. 

Jr  KNTAMETERS.  An  appeal  of  the  pious  communiiy,  well-nigh  cxliaustcd  by  the 
oppression  of  the  N.  Arabians,  to  Israel's  God.  It  may  be  grouped  with  cxxiii.  ; 
both  psalms  are  a  record  of  deepening  misery  imder  the  often  petty  but  always 
humiliating  tyranny  of  the  N.  .^Krabian  oppressors  in  S.  Palestine.  It  is  natural 
to  compare  Ezr.  iv.  4,  Neh.  ii.  19,  iv.  7  f.,  passages,  which  to  say  the 
least,    are   retlexiuns   of  history.      'False   lips'    reminds   us   of  v.  10,    hi.  4-6, 


l82  THE    PSALMS. 

Iv.  22,  cix.  2,  and  (Hiitli<,'en)  the  I2tli  of  the  I'sahiis  of  Solomon.  Wlien 
tipen  violence  was  inipriulcnl,  fraud  anil  cahuiiny  supplied  its  place.  Several 
passages  in  I's.  cxx.,  which  admit  of  no  safe  translation,  have  been,  it  is 
hoped,  correctly  restored,  and  the  difficulty  of  '  Meshech '  and  '  Kedar '  has 
heen  removed.  Cp. ,  however,  OP,  p.  55  ;  Rosenzweig,  Das  JalirJmndert  nach 
dem  Bab.  Exil,  pp.  40  f. ;    Coblenz,  pp.  132  ff. ;  Smend,  p.  136.  j 

Afarked.     Of  tJie  Ishmaelites.  I 

I     Unto   Yahwe  in   my  distress  |  I  call,  and   he  will   answer 

nie.  2 

Rescue    me    from    the    false    lips,    |    frcm    the    deceitful 

tongue.i 
Rescue  me  from  the  warriors  of  Ishmael,  |  from  the  people 

of  Jerahmeel.-  4 

Weary  to  exhaustion   is    my  soul  [  with  a  people    which 

hates  peace  !  6 

And    as    often    as    I   speak   for    peace  |  they   +are    bent+ 

on  war.  7 

Critical  Notes,  i.  Read  "JJl'-T  (Bi.).— 2.  Omit  mnv— The  gloss  in 
7'.  3  e.xplains  H''^"!  pIL't'.     Cp.  Mic.  i.  5/'. 

3.  On  vv.  3,  4  Duhm  remarks  that  the  expressions  are  wanting"  in 
naturalness.  Of  course,  for  they  belong  to  a  clever  editor.  ^l^H  is 
probably  a  corrupt  fragment  of  ^j'^i'lirT  ;  D^Jl^r  a  corruption  of  ':'^^y:^::♦^ 
(cp.  \^-^=."ty::\  c.xli.  5,  2  S.  i.  21,  Isa.  x.  27).  ^^m  (like  ^'^HJ,  2  S. 
xxiii.  30)  and  D\*Jj")l  (like  DjTI  in  i  K.  xix.  4  f.,  nQD")  in  Num.  xxxiii. 
18  f.)  both  represent  '^S'^mv  Read  'r\'\''  Dro  !  '.rj^-  -~li3i!D  ''j':'^jirr. 
— The  gloss  in  7'.  5  seems  to  give  two  explanations  of  Jerahmeel.  The 
second  is  the  more  important,  because  the  '  Kidrai,'  or  Kedarites,  did  as 
a  fact  become  prominent  in  N.  Arabia  in  the  time  of  Assurbanipal. 
O  w  7Vy^  (note  the  improbable  form)  and  ''S"Ti<  DJ*  are  corruptions, 
editorially  manipulated,  of  ':ij<*jrnv  ""jTIJ  comes  from  Iji:)  (Gen.  x.  23) 
=  "ni:'il.     ll^Q,  as  usual,  =  0"^:*3.   [jljjjr   comes   from   ]r3.— 4.    M 

nyn^D'yi^,    very   awkward    after   jlZn.      Read    nV'Hr^'^i'    (cxxiii.    4). 
tt:t  --  .TYrr 

Point  D^  (cp.  /.  3).— Read  D'l'?r  "131i^  "Dl.  ubZ'  'JJ^  comes  from  a 
dittographed  "^t  '^y\'\U.  J.  P.  Peters  (jBL,  1884.  p.  31)  is  content  with 
reading  >3  (cp.  G  S  2).  and  illustrates  the  inverted  position  of  O  both 
here  and  in  cxxviii.  2  (but  see  od  toe.)  from  Delitzsch's  Ass.  Gram., 
P-  358. 

'  What  is  Jerahmeel?  and  what  Ibhmael?     A  deceitful  tongue  (:■.  3). 
-  Jerahmeel  :  Geshur,  Cusham  [Cushan].     Jerahmeel:   Kedar  (:•.  5). 


PSALM    CXXI.  183 


PSALM    CXXI. 

JT.EXAMETERS.  Israel  amidst  the  mountains  of  Judah  (or  perhaps  of  Jerahmeel) 
waits  expectantly  for  the  messengers  of  good  tidings  (Nah.  i.  15,  Isa.  Hi.  7). 
The  psalm  may  have  been  sung  antiphonally.  The  change  of  pronoun  ('  my 
help,'  'thy  foot,'  &c.)  reminds  us  of  the  changes  in  the  form  of  expression  in 
Vs.  xci. ,  which  indeed  is  alscj  the  nearest  parallel  to  our  jisalm  in  its  ideas. 
Smend  (AT.  ReL-ges'-hS'^',  420)  says  that  in  I's.  cxxi.  despondent  and  believ- 
ing Israel  are  placed  in  contrast.     This  arises  from  his   trusting  the  traditional 

reading  ]^^J73  v.  \l>.  There  is  obviou.sly  no  touch  of  despondency  in  the 
psalm  as  presented  here.  Note  Pt'w'^u7  hi  the  title  ;  elsewhere  JlV^.'^ri- 
Cp.  '7N1D^,  from  ':'N;2nT,   in  Prov.  xxxi.   i    {Enc.  Bib.  'Lemuel'). 

Marked.      Of  the  Ishinaelites.  I 

1      I  lift  up  mine  eyes  to  the  mountains;  |  I  am  sure  that  my 
help  is  coming. 
My  help  is  coming  from  Yahwe,  j  the  maker  of  heaven 

and  earth.  2 

He  cannot   suffer  thy  foot  to  fail,  |  thy  Guardian  cannot 

slumber  ;  3 

Surely    he    slumbers    not,    he    sleeps    not,    |    who  is  the 

Guardian  of  Israel.  4 

Yahwe   is  thy  Guardian,  Yahwe    |    is  thy  shade  on  thy 

right  hand  ;  5 

Cusham  shall   not  smite   thee    bv   day,  |  nor   Jerahmeel 

by  night.  6 

Yahwe  will  guard  thee  from  all  evil,  j  he  will  guard  thy 

soul ;  7 

Yahwe  will  guard  thy  going  out  |  and  thy  coming  in 
both  now  and  for  ever. 

Critical  A'o/fs.  i.  M  n?>>  N'O''  ^^**■2■  ^  ''''"■^'  i'itcrpretuii:.  'If 
the  clause  contains  a  question,  the  Hebrew  is  of  the  choicest,  but  the 
context  does  not  render  this  view  very  probable.  If  the  mountains  about 
Jerusaleni  symbolize  the  dwelling-place  of  Yahwe,  the  writer  could  not 
be  uncertain  as  to  whence  his  help  would  come.  But  if  we  fall  back  on 
the  view  that  the  clause  is  a  relative  one,  we  cannot  acquit  our  poet  of 
writing  in  a  rather  corrupt  style'  (Giesebrecht,  ZATW.  1881,  p.  284). 
Read  >3  ^?3N^^. 

6.  M  li'l^Iir,  mv  The  expression,  'the  moon  shall  not  strike,'  is  barely 


184  THE    PSALMS. 

possible,  but  we  cannot  separate  tliis  passage  from  Isa.  xlix.  10,  where  it 

is  said,  '}(;;-(?/;  and  sun  shall  not  strike  them.'     In  both  passages  Hitzig 

feels   obliged   to   weaken    the   usual    rendering    of  HDil.     But   can  we 

venture  to  say  that  sarab  '  strikes '  ?     The  differences  of  the  commentators 

indicate  great   uncertainty,  and   if  we   further   take   into   consideration 

Ps.  xci.  5  f.   (see   note)  and    Cant.  iii.  S   (see    C>//.  L'//>.),   we   may  be 

forced  to  read  DiiJDI  jlS^li  in  Isa.,  and  0V3  Cas  Ixxii.  O  and  ':'N'.2nT  in 
T  •% :       -   :  T  T  ••.    ■ 

our  psalm.     (Or  does  ]l;:2V  come  from  'biy?)     The  danger  from  Jerah- 

meelite  aggression  in  the  Persian  period  is  often  referred  to. — For  nD3^ 
G  gives  (KKuvaei  ae,  as  if  TT12>  (Niph.  in  Isa.  xliii.  2,  Prov.  vi.  28).     Herz. 


PSALM  CXXII. 

X  ENTAMETERS.  Perhaps  a  song  of  returned  pilgrims  ;  at  any  rate,  '■Z'.  I,  2, 
6-9  are  very  suitable  on  this  theory.  I 'v.  3-5,  however,  are  obscure,  and  so  far 
as  they  are  translatable,  we  can  hardly  say  that  the  contents  are  suitable.  Why 
should  a  pilgrim  in  post-exilic  times  bethink  himself  that  formerly  the  'tribes' 
went  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  that  there  was  the  chief  seat  of  the  administration 
of  justice?  Or  if,  with  Wellh.,  we  take  the  perlects  in  rv.  4,  5  to  be  present 
in  sense,  and  '  tribes'  to  be  an  archaism,  it  is  '  curious  that  Jerusalem  is  here  ex- 
tolled, not  as  the  place  of  worship,  but  as  the  seat  of  judgment,  and  that  the 
Sanhedrin,  the  great  council  of  the  Jews,  not  the  house  of  [Vahwe],  is  de- 
clared to  be  the  object  of  the  pilgrimage'  {^Psalnts,  SBOT,  p.  211),  and 
that  the  phrase  '  house  of  David '  should  have  become,  as  in  Zech.  xii. 
10  (?),  'a  name  for  the  government'  (A7.  Pi-op/i S'>'> ,  p.  199).  It  is  clear, 
however,  that  the  text  of  vv.  3-5  is  not  in  order,  and,  in  order  to  get 
further,  w"e  must  use  the  experience  which  we  have  already  gained  l)y  digging 
below  the  surface  of  the  text.  Verses  3-5  are  most  probably  a  long  gloss, 
which — in  its  correct  form — states  that  the  city  referred  to  in  z\  2  had  been 
rebuilt  {i.e.  by  the  Israelites)  in  the  Negeb,  that  tiie  tribes  (of  Israel)  in 
the  Negeb  used  to  '  go  up '  thither  on  the  festivals  of  Vahwe,  and  that  there 
was  the  seat  of  judgment  of  the  ruling  Davidic  house.  The  name  of  the 
city  (to  be  read  so,  both  in  the  psalm  and  in  the  gloss)  was  Ishmael.  This 
is  a  very  frefjuent  synonym  for  Jerahmeel,  and  refers  to  a  city  (Beth-  or 
Gil)eath-jeral)nieel)  where  there  was  a  noted  sanctuary  and  where  the  kings 
of  Israel  frequently  dwelt  (cp.  on  i  S.  x.  5  ;  2  S.  xv.  11,  xxiv. 8).  The  prophets, 
both  before  and  after  '  the  Exile,'  were  unfavourable  to  the  cultus  here  practised 
(see  Crit.  Bib.,  part  ii.  passi/ii),  which  was  devoted  partly  to  Yahwe,  partly 
to  the  Jerahmeelite  god,  but  there  is  nothing  rash  (having  regard  to  £zek. 
xl.  I  f.,  xlvii.  13,  cp.  Isa.  xix.  iS,  and  see  Crit.  Bil>.)  in  supposing  that 
psalms  and  otiier  writings  were  brought  to  Jerusalem  from  such  a  famous 
centre  as  Beth-jerahmeel  or  Beth-ishmael.  Ps.  cxxii.  can  scarcely  be  the  only 
psalm  in  the  Psalter  which,  in  its  original  form,  was  a  psalm  of  b'eth-jerahmeel, 
but  it  is  that  which  can  with  most  probability  be  indicated  as  such,  and  next 
to  it  stand  Pss.  cxxv.  and  cxx.xiii.,  cxxxiv.  in  their  earlier  forms.  Under  the 
hand  of  the  redactor,  both  the  original  psalm  and  the  explanatory  gloss  sustained 
a  few  important  alterations.  •  Islimael  '  of  course  became  'Jerusalem'  (the 
two  names  are  often  confounded,  but  here  probably  the  alteration  was  deliberate), 
and  the  gloss — already  corrupt  in  parts — was  adaj^ted  to  the  use  of  orthodox 
adherents  of  the  Jerusalem  temple.  How  the  redactor  interpreted  the  second 
half  of  -'.  3.  it  is  impossible  for  any  one  to  say.  The  glossator  was  of  course 
wrong  (as  the  author  of  Prov.  xxv.  i  was  wrong)  if  he  meant  to  stamp  the 
work  before  him  as  pre-exilic.  There  is  nothing  in  style  or  ideas  to  distinguish 
our  psalm  from  those  which  accompany  it.  The  large  gloss  in  z'v.  3-5  is 
parallel  to  that  in  Ps.  cxxxiii.  Even  apart  from  this,  the  two  psalms — cxxii. 
an<l  cxxxiii.— may  fitly  be  grouped  together,  as  eulogies  of  the  sacred  metropolis. 


PSALM    CXXII.  185 

Marked.      Of  tJic  Ishmaclites.      Of  'Arab-efhati.  i 

I     I  rejoiced    when  they  said  to   me,  |  '  Let  us  go   to    the 

house  of  Yahwe.' 
Our  feet  stood  |  in  the  gates  of  Ishmael.i  2 

Pray  for   the  peace  of  Ishmael,  |  let  those  who  love  her 

pra}-  for  it  !  6 

Peace    be   within    thy    castles,    |    prosperity   within    thy 

towers !  7 

For  the  sake  of  my  brethren  and  neighbours  ]  let  me  be 

zealous  for  peace  within  thee  !  8 

For  the  sake  of  the  house  of  Yahwe  our  God  [  I  would 

seek  happiness  for  thee.  9 

Critical  Notes,     i.     M  D''"^Q^?^,  ;  G  eVt  toTs  elprjKoai.  ixoi.     Del.,  Bit. 

&c.  see  here  a  prelude  of  a  Mishnic  usage  ;  cp.  y"1(i)T3,  '  when  one  sows,' 

Mishna,  Pc'a  ii.  6  (Kon.  §  412a).  But  ought  we  to  import  a  Mishnic 
usage   on    the    ground  of  a  ^?     Read  Q^;:2^^21.— 2.    Read  nv^^r:!  (Bi., 

Du.;  metre),  and  continue  7h}^rjiy^  (cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on  Zech.  xii.  11,  xiv. 
14). —  In  the  gloss  (t'T'.  3-5),  besides  the  initial  correction  (cp.  introd.),  for 

iin^   nb'nizin'-y  i^yj,  read  D^'r^Noni^  H^?^-   i^^^^""  "i^i^  On'\) 

and  Tirr*  (cp.  on  Ixxxiii.  6)  are  regular  corruptions  of  '^N!'.;!!")''-  The 
text-reading  has  never  yet  been  shown  to  be  intelligible  ('  very  peculiar,' 
says    Olshausen).     For    n''"^tD2ti'   read    7j^rjni^  'V,  i-e-  the   tribes   of 

T 

Israel  established  (partly)  in  Jerahmeel  {i.e.  the  Negeb) :  cp.  Crit.  Bib. 
on  Judg.  XX.  2  (□'n'^Nn  Uyj)-  For  '7KTi;''?  r\T\V  I'C'id  '^'^^  Jliy ; 
'^  in  ''<^'h  is  ditto-jraphic.     For  nDl^J  read  '^^<V/"2tt>"'2  (cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on 

T    T 

Ezek.  xlviii.,  35)  ;  Oti'^  also  (like  ^ti^**  elsewhere  ;  cp.  the  place-names 
^3^  and  D1^^)  represents  'Qli^^.  Grimme's  emendations  and  interpre- 
tations (p.   113  f)  are  most  unsatisfactory,     niil^  for  "lin^  might  pass, 

T\  : 

but  'O  du  Stadt,  mit  welcher  Juda  so  eng  verkettet  ist,'  for  "1J  n^lJIin, 
is  surely  not  a  good  specimen  of  this  scholar's  exegesis. 

3.    M  ?|''7^^.     If  this  is  right,  we  must  read  the  next  word  TT^bilj^ 
T  :  •  '•-  T 

(cp.  Job  xii.  6)  ;  so  Evv.,  Du.  But  the  dwellings  are  doubly  represented 
in  the  next  verse.  Read  ^'^^^^^  The  phrase  'those  who  love  her'  is 
characteristic    (cp.    Isa.    Ixvi.    10). —  Read     ^^3^^{. —  4.     M    TJ^rTH  ; 


'  Islimat'l  that  is  l)uiU  in  the  land  of  ilie  Jerahmeelites,  whither  the  tribes  went 
up — the  tribes  of  Jerahmeel,  the  congregation  of  Israel — to  give  thanks  to  the 
name  of  Vahwo.  For  in  Ishmael  were  the  thrones  for  judgment,  the  thrones  of 
David's  house  {zv.  3-5). 


lS6  THE    PSALMS. 

Bii.,   'before   thy    wall.'     But    parallelism    is   opposed.     Following   the 

parallels  of  xlviii.   14.  Zech.  ix.  4  read  Tf-'PD'n.— 5.  M  rTIZLlhi.     '"To 

•  -T    ••  t:   — : 

speak  peace  on  some  one  "  means  so  to  speak  that  he  gets  peace,  as 
Ixxxvii.  3'  (Dii.).  Is  this  satisfactory?  Ixxxvii.  3  is  corrupt.  Read 
perhaps  ^*^^'~^^^. 

T     :    TV 

PSALM    CXXIII. 

1  KXTAMETERS.  A  psalm  of  Complaint,  to  be  grouped  with  cxx.  A  trans- 
position is   necessary  both  for  the   sense  and  for   the    poetical    structure. 

Marked.       Of  the  Ishmaelites.  I 

I     To  thee  lift  T  up  mine  eyes,  |  O  thou  that  art  throned  in 

heaven  ! 
Have  pity  on   us,  O  Yahwe !  have  pit}-   on  us,    for  too 

much  I  are  we  filled  with  contempt.  3 

Too  much   is  our   soul  filled  |  with  the  mockery  of  the 

proud. ^  4 

Surely    as    the   eyes   of    servants  |  +are    fixed-i-   on    their 

master,  2 

As  the  eyes  of  a  handmaid  '■'■  ■■'■  I  +are  fixed+  on  her 
mistress, 

So  our  eyes  are  fixed  on  Yahwe  our  God,  |  until  he  have 
pity  on  us. 

Critical  Notes.  3.  Read  ;)],*'?.  In  the  gloss  TI^H  (like  the  proper 
names  nn  and  \)^y)  comes  from  '?nr"'hJ  = '?N^':2^'^  D':V\S^:i':5  (so  Kt.) 
comes  from  D'JV^  Jiy^  ;  ^V^'O'^ 'HT'  (cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on  Gen.  x.  2). 


PSALM    CXXIV. 

X  ENTAMKTERS.  Israel's  miraculous  escape.  The  N.  Arabians  must  have 
made  some  determined  efibrt  to  annihilate  Israel.  This  fresh,  bright  lyric 
may  be  grouped  with  Ps.  cxxix. 

Marked.     Of  tlie  IsJimaelites.     Of  Arab-ethau.  I 

I     '  If  Yahwe  had  not  been  for  us,'  |  let  Israel  sa}-, 

'  If  Yahwe  had    not    been    for    us,  |  when  Aram  rose  up 

against  us,  2 

'  Ishmael.     The  mockery  of  the  Jcrahmeelites. 


PSALM    CXXIV.  187 

They  had  swallowed  us  up  alive  at  the  kindling  |  of  their 

wrath  against  us,  3 

The  waters  ^  had  overwhelmed  us,  [  the  hillows  had  gone 

over  our  soul.  4 

Blessed  be   Yahwe,  who  gave  us  not  up  |  to  the  men  of 

insolence !  6 

Our  soul  escaped  as  a  bird  |  from  the  fowler's  trap.  7 

The  trap  broke,  and  we  |  escaped  [and  passed  on]. 
Our  help  is  in  the  name  of  Yahwe,  |  the  maker  of  heaven 
and  earth. 

Critical  Notes.  (Title.)  G'-^i^'Ms  without  'to  David.'  i,  3.  Cp.  J. 
P.  Peters,  JBL,  1884,  p.  32.-2.  Read  D~1^^  (cxviii.  6,  cxix.  134).— 4. 
M  "^TJ^  ;  archaistic  for  TJ^  ?  (Kon.  ii.  i,  p.  245).  But  the  case  would  be 
unique.  Metrically,  ''TJ*i  in  vv.  3-5  is  superfluous.  It  is  probably  a 
corruption  of  DThJ,  a  correction  of  D"T^J• — ^I  12^  n7nj.  Such  an 
accus.  form  as  n^nj  is  very  improbable,  in  spite  of  n/Tl^  in  c.xx.  i. 
Moreover,  7n3  is  not  the  right  word;  the  wild  waters  which  sweep  all 
away,  and  destroy  the  life  of  the  nation,  should  be  either  D^/3^  or 
Dv3  (cp.  xlii.  8).  Here,  D vil  is  best  (see  on  xviii.  51^)  ;  this  requires 
^ihi?-  Griitz  proposes  "irhv^l  or  (Aram.)  '^i^HQ  'gale,'  '  storm,' but 
neither  here  nor  in  Prov.  xxiii.  34,  xxvi.  10  is  it  desirable  to  introduce  this 
Talmudic  and  Aramaic  word.  We  have  still  to  account  for  the  seeming 
omission  of  7'.  5.  This  verse  consists  of  a  part  off.  4  dittographed,  with 
the  addition  of  the  strange  word  D'^JlTin  ('T,  «7r.  Xfy.)  ;  see  next  note. 

5.  M  DH'^'y:;':'  =^1^.  Can  this  be  right?  (i)  The  victims  were  to 
be  '  swallowed  up  alive '  (/.  3),  and  (2)  the  reference  off  the  suffix  is  not 
obvious.  Certainly  read  *ilT  "'i^J^}7.  The  two  words  became  parted. 
One  was  misread  '^^',^7  {i.e.  with  mark  of  abbreviation),  and  retained 
(7'.  6)  with  the  addition  of  ^HtD,  a  corruption  of  a  gloss  in  the  margin  ; 
the  other  was  misread  as  '11'T.  and  attached  to  the  dittograph  of  /.  4, 
with  the  addition  of  the  article  and  plural  ending.  Now  as  to  r|"1J0- 
This  is  simply  JTIH)  turned  round,  and  with  TS  exchanged  for  ID.  j~)")D 
might  mean  the  Euphrates,  but  we  have  no  occasion  to  interpret  even 
the  gloss  so  as  to  conflict  with  the  other  historical  references  in  the 
Psalter.  As  in  Jer.  xiii.  1-7  (notably)  and  in  other  passages  (see  criticism 
in  Crit.  Bib.  of  the  passages  containing  mS),  j"l")3  =  rn3N>  which  was 
the  name  of  a  district  in  the  N.  Anibian  border-land,  with  a  stream  called 
the  JIIH)  "l^^— 7.    Add  ~)2i^5"l  (metre)  ;  cp.  c.xli.  \ob. 

'  IVrfali  (see  on  /.  5). 


THE    PSALMS. 


PSALM  CXXV. 

1  ENTAMETKRs.  Another  Jerahmeelite  and  yet  Israelite  psalm  has  been 
adopted  and  transformed  so  as  to  suit  orthodox  worshippers  at  Jerusalem 
(cp.  Ps.  cxxii.).  The  redactor  has  chanj;ed  the  place-name  [Beth-]ishmael 
into  'Jerusalem,'  and  added  an  appendix,  desiring  Vahwc's  mercy  for  the 
good  and  upright,  and  prophesying  captivity  for  those  who  adhere  to  the 
heterodox  community  at  Beth-ishmael  or  -jerahmeel.  A  suljsequenf  editor 
manipulated  this  appendix,  so  as  to  remove  the  reference  to  Ishmael  which 
had  become  superfluous.  The  final  '  peace  upon  Israel '  is  of  course  liturgical 
(as   cxxviii.  6/^).     So  Gr.,  We.,  Jacob,  K.  J.  Grimm. 

Marked.     Of  the  Ishmaelites.  I 

I     Those  that  trust  in  Yahwe  are  Hke  mount  Zion,  |  which 
is  for  ever  unmoved. 
Ishmael — the  mountains  are  around  her,  |  so  Yahwe  is 

around  his  people.^  2 

For  the  sceptre  of  the  wicked  one  -  shall  not  rest  |  on  the 

lot  of  the  righteous,  3 

The  sons  of  iniquity  shall  not  stretch  forth  |  their  hands 
[against]  the  righteous. 

Appendix  to  revised  psalm. 

Deal  graciously,  O  Yahwe  !   with  the  good  and  those  of 

honest  heart.  4 

But  those  who  err  [in]  the  assembly  of  Ishmael  -^  j  Yahwe 

will  consume.  5 

Peace  upon  Israel. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  ]T^.  A  very  ancient  corruption  of  ]i'ji  =  '^X^'QZ'''. 
There  may  therefore  have  been  a  Mt.  Zion  at  IJeth-ishmael  (see  on  cxxii.) 
as  well  as  at  Jerusalem.  Cp.  on  Am.  vi.  i. — 2.  2Ii^'  (end  of  v.  i)  and 
D7li'lT'  'ire  both  possible  corruptions  or  alterations  of  '.^ti'^  ;  cp.  introd. 
to  Ps.  cxxii.  Omit  xh'SV — '!")  nn^^?^,  which  is  probably  an  interpreta- 
tion and  expansion  of  a  misread  '7hJ,':D;m'']  IT-— 3-  Read  y^^^^\■,  with 
G  S,  Gr.— For  "^D*?  read  ':5K;:3nT  ;  cp.  on  Isa.  xlviii.  ii.  Duhm  has 
already  remarked  on  the  awkwardness  of  ^j'?  '^r^*?  instead  of  ]i3,  and 
Grimme  (p.  115)  even  says  that  he  finds  ^'Q*?  unintelligible,  however  we 
connect  it.  Following  S,  he  reads  '^'\.  From  our  point  of  view,  ^*!D/ 
comes  from  'tSI^HT  (cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on  Isa.  xlviii.   11),  which  is  a  gloss 

'  Both  now  and  for  ever.  -  Jerahmeel. 

•'  The  doers  of  iniquity. 


PSALM    CXXVI.  189 

on  V'i^in.— For  nj"l':'W3  read  nb'W  ^^2.  (Ixxxix.  23  ;  2  S.  vii.  10),  and 
T  TT  tt:-  :  T  :-     •• : 

to  Dpnill  prefix  ^]^.  The  passage  has  been  edited  so  as  to  suggest 
that  worshipping  at  the  sanctuary  of  Beth-jerahnieel  was  'iniquity.' 

5.   M  Qni:i':':i  Dm:^"'':'v    Read  2b  ^'^v''b^  (xciv.  15,  xcvii.  u  &c). 

Qrn2'72  comes  from  Dm7p;p[y]-  This  was  written  too  soon,  and 
became  corrupted  under  the  influence  of  2.'7,  which  finally  had  to 
disappear  as  dittographic— 6.   M  Dfli'^Q'ppi^  □"^iSani,  doubly  obscure. 

No  satisfactory  remedy  is  possible  except  on  the  hypothesis  that  the 
writer  glances  at  Jerahmeelite  (.Samaritan  ?)  heterodoxy  which  he  abhors. 
Dr\i7  comes  from  blQD  (cp.  on  cxxix.  3),  which  is  a  regular  corruption 
of  byDr\i<  =  biiyi2^''  (see  on  i  S.  x.  n,  2  S.  iii.  17).  p^pV  might  come 
from  t'h^Qn")^ ;  cp.  on  Hpl'?!?,  Prov.  xxx.  15,  but  more  probably 
represents  '77^p2.  For  D"'t3Dm  read  D''^J^nT— M  □D"'':'V,  'shall  cause 
them  to  go' — whither?  'Cause  them  to  perish'  (Ges.-Buhl  ;  cp.  ^7hJ, 
xxxix.  14),  is  not  natural.     Read  D?D^^-— P^i^  ^7y3"J^^^  is  a  gloss  on 

PSALM    CXXVI. 

1  ENTAMETERS.  A  contrast  between  the  former  good  fortune  of  Israel,  who 
for  a  time  had  seemed  to  be  alive,  but  who  now  seems  prostrate  in  Sheol. 
Smend  (p.  S6,  note;  and  Duhm  take  the  perfects  in  vz>.  1-3  to  be  prophetic, 
so  that  the  passage  is  virtually  a  Messianic  prediction.  J'or  'prophetic  perfect,' 
Konig  {Synf.,  §  133)  proposes  the  term  '  Katal  perspectivum,'  but  remarks 
that  the  optatives  in  vv.  5  f.  would  be  inconsistent  with  the  'Katal  perspectivum.' 
To  the  present  writer,  vv.  I-3  seem  parallel  to  cxxxvii.  1-3.  It  is  a  scene 
from  idealized  past  history  that  we  have  before  us.  The  psalmist's  mind  is 
filled  with  the  promises  of  il.  Isaiah  and  the  Chronicler's  idealization  of  the  period 
of  'the    Return'  (see  eg.   Ezra  iii.   ii-iv.   i). 

Marked.      Of  the  Ishmaeliles.  I 

I     When    Yahwe    restored  Zion  to  life  |  we  were  as  those 
that  dream. 
Then  was  our  mouth  filled  with  laughter,  |  and  our  tongue 

with  shouts  of  jo}-.  2 

Then  was   it  said/  Great  things  Yahwe  |    has  done  for 

these. 
Great     things  +indeed+  Yahwe   did  for  us  ;    |   we    were 

right  glad.  3 

Restore  us  to  life,  O  Yahwe  !  |  raise  up  Jacob's  sons.  4 

Those    who   sowed    with    tears  |  will    reap   with    shouts 

of  joy.  5 

'  Among  the  nations. 


igO  THE    PSALMS. 

Weeping     may     a     man     set    lurlli    |    who    scatters    his 

seed,  6 

With  shouts  of  i()\-  will  he'  return,  |  bearing  his 
sheaves. 

5.     The  loss  of  '  as  the  channels  in  pour    water    on    the    dry    ground,'    he 

the    south-land,'    i.e.    '  as    torrent-beds  might    then    have    continued,    '  as    the 

in  the  dry  Negeh  are  filled  by  the  rain  channels  are    filled  with   water  in    the 

of  autumn,'   can   only  be   regretted,    if  Negeb  in  time  of  autumn.'     What  we 

we  prefer  vagueness  and  inaccuracy  to  reejuire  after  /.  ^a  is  something  which 

distinctness    and    symmetry.     There  is  will    expand    and    explain    the    phrase 

no  parallel  for  describing  a  torrent-bed  '  restore  us  to  life,'  and  the  phrase  we 

as  dead.     Had  the  poet  said,  '  My  soul  want    actually   underlies    the    existing 

longeth  for  thee,  as  a  thirsty  land.      O  text.     .See  crit.  n. 

Critical  Notes.  i.  Most  read  jl^nttT  or  T\>'y^  for  TS'y't  (G 
alx\i-a\u>(Tiav).  But  this  is  not  enough.  Read  *i'»2  Ii'^J~j^^<  '''  ^H'llt^^- 
See  on  xiv.  7,  Ixxxv.  ib.—^.  Read  ^J\-li:?3rnJ^  ''  1'y\'^  (orl>^n.^). 
To   take   H^l^  'is  pass.    part,  from    3W  (Grimme,  p.    115)  is   surely 

T 

most  unsatisfactory.     5.    M  ^J3I1  Dp"'^^^^•     See  e.xeg.  n.      Read  Dprt 

npr'^^H  (cp.  isa.  xiix.  6a).  'sNo=3pr  Dp.i ;  3:m=3pr  'J2. 

7.  Point  "T[Ii?D  (Am.  ix.  13)  and  oniit  Xii^^  as  an  intrusion  from  v.  bb 
(We.,  Du.). " 

PSALM    cxxvir". 

1  HAT  Ps.  cxxvii.  is  composite  was  seen  by  Bickell  (1882),  J-  P-  Peters  (1884), 
Biithgen  (1892),  and  Duhm  (1899).  Both  passages  are  in  pentameters.  The 
former  is  primarily  addressed  to  the  poor  who  preponderate  in  restored  Jerusalem. 
Their  houses  were  of  weak  material,  and  easily  broken  through.  Nor  was  any 
of  the  towns  of  Judah  secure  from  a  sudden  attack  of  the  N.  Arabians  (cp. 
Neh.  iv.  7  ff.).  Watchmen  were  required  to  call  the  citizens  to  the  walls. 
But  a  secondary  application  lay  close  at  hand.  The  term  'builders'  was  used 
for  the  secular  and  spiritual  authorities  of  the  Jews.  Cp.  Mt.  xvi.  18,  Acts 
iv.  II,  and  cp.  Levy,  Neuhehr.  IVorterb.,  s.r.  ^JQ.  Without  the  blessing  of 
Him  who  has  promised  both  to  'build'  (Am.  ix.  11)  and  also  to 'keep  watch 
over'  (cxxi.  4)  His  people,  the  .sleepless  anxiety  of  rulers  (Eccles.  viii.  16) 
is  in  vain.  Can  we  say  that  the  psalmist  recalls  the  'builders'  to  a  'wise 
passiveness '  (=  sleep)?  'So  he  giveth  his  beloved  sleep,'  or  ' .  .  .  in  sleep?' 
See  crit.  note. 

Marked.     Of  the  hhinaelites.  I 

I     P^xcept   Yaliwe    build  the  house,  |  its  builders  labour  in 
vain. 
Except  Yahwb  keep  watch  over  the  cit}',  |  the  watchtiian 
vainly  watches. 

All  in  vain,  ye  who  rise  up  early,  |  who  sit  down  late,  2 

Who  eat  the  bread  of  pains  |  from  fear  of  Jerahmeel. 


PSALMS     CXXVII.-',    CXXVIII.  IQI 

Critical  Notes.  (Title.)  See  Inti'od.  TV^V^l  not  recognized  in 
(;(^5AT)  .  it  springs  from  t'Nyi^li'^'? ,  a  correction  of  m'^yron.  i.  Omit 
13,  a  fragment  of  a  dittograpliecl  VJIH-  Not  recognized  in  G. — 4.  M 
SJi^  iin^t'  \r^  ]3.  For  ]3  (scarcely  translatable)  Kamphausen  and 
Che.'''  read  ]3^i  (cp.  xxxi.  23).  Griitz.  and  Grimme,  after  G  S  J,  read 
TTHv-     But  what  of  ^JJ^i>  ?     Is  it  an  Aramaism  ?     Improbable;  and  is 

T      •    •  T  •• 

not  the  interpretation  '  he  gives  to  his  beloved  (in)  sleep,'  rather  strained  ? 
And  would  a  Hebrew  writer  have  accepted  the  sentmient  .-^  Duhm 
boldly  omits  ^yiJ   as  a  gloss  to  j"1^li^  in  v.  2l>  ;  Grimme   reads  *^<JIi^ 

•  double  (gifts).'  Really,  t^yiD,  like  ^V^1'i^  sometimes  {e.g.  ix.  2,  Ivi.  2,  &c.), 
and  like  ]hJ^Ii^  in  Ixviii.  iS,  represents  a  common  popular  distortion  of 
'^i^PQIi'^-  This  gives  us  the  key  to  the  passage.  ITT'?  represents 
':'K?.2nT  (cp.  mn''':',  xlv.  i  ?),  and  comparing  Cant.  iii.  8  (read  inS-^ 
TIT)  we  may  probably  trace  \r?  p  (or  O,  G)  to  n}^"l\'D.  Cp.  on 
cxxi.  6. 


PSALM    CXXVII.'-' 

1  ENTAMETERS.     A  bodyguard  of  stalwart  sons,  a  desirable   blessing,   and   the 
reward  of  piety  (cp.  cxxviii.). 

I     Behold  sons  are  a  heritage  of  Yahwe,  |  the  fruit  of  the 

womb  is  +his+  reward.  3 

Like  arrows  in  the  hand  of  a   warrior,  |  so  are  sons  born 

in  youth.  ^ 

Happy  the  man  that  has  tilled  |  his  quiver  with  them  ; 
They  will   not  be  put  to  shame,  when  they  argue  |  with 
enemies  in  the  gate. 

4.     This    presupposes    a    time    of  David    they    preface    tlie    fight    by  a 

peace.     Those  who  use  the  psalm  are  dispute    or    (Bevan    ap.    Kirkpatrick, 
not  themselves  ^lobortan  or  '  warriors   ;  \  1         i  ,  • 

all   their  fights   are   for  justice  in  the  P"  753)  by  a     boastuig-match '  like  the 

'  gate  '  (cp.  Am.   v.    10,   12,    15),  and  Jy/^/F(7iar«  of  the  Arabs  ?— Read  t^^l^"' 
here,  wheu  old  and  feeble,   they  need  ->->^» 

the  support  of  a  numerous  family.     Or  *^"^     '^IV      S°  <^vi.'iz  (in  the  main), 

may  we  suppose  that  like  Goliath  and  Duhm. 


PSALM    CXXVIII. 

lENTA METERS.     Again  the  blessings  of  the  righteous  in  time  of  peace.     The 
close  seems  defective. 


192  THE    PSALMS. 

Marked.       Of  the  Ishmaelites.  i 

I     Happ3'  is  every  one  that  fears  Yahwe,  |    that   walks  in 
his  ways. 
What  thy  hands  gain  thou  dost  eat,  |  happy,  thou,  +yea+ 

fortunate.  ~ 

Thy  wife  is  hke  a  fruitful  vine  |  in  the  recesses  of  thy 

house.  3 

Thy  sons  like  offshoots  of  an  olive  |  around  thy  table. 

Behold, thus  shall  the  man  be  blessed  |  that  fears  Yahwe  !       4 
Yahwe  shall  bless  thee  out  of  Zion,  |  -■■     ".  5 

And  thou  shalt  behold    the  good    fortune    of  Ishmael  | 

all  the  days  of  th)-  life, 
And  thou  shalt  see  sons  of  th}-  sons,  |  '■'•     ■''.  6 

Peace  upon  Israel ! 

3.  Probably  the  seclusion  of  women  olives  wliich  have  sprung  from  its 
was   a  custom  of  the  capital. — 4.    In       roots  become  ready  to  take  its  place. 

□"•Jl^T  'hrW  there  is  a  double  plural  For    the    phrase    cp.    D"'T"l^i    'hTW 

ending  (cp.  Ges.-K.,  §  125,  2a),  but  ^^D^*?^,  Sirach  1.  12,  and  the  possible 

the  sense  is  the  same  as  in  /TT    wTW ■  reading    p"T^rT   "^pTW    in   Isa.   Ixi.   3 

As  the  parent  tree  decays,  the  young  {SBOT,  Isa.,  Heb.,  p.  161). 

Critical  Notes.  2.  Omit  ''D  (not  known  to  G)  ;  dittography.  So 
Griitz,  Duhm. — 5.  Omit  ^3  (from  a  dittographed  p),  with  Gr. — 
7.  For  '1~)>  read  perhaps  'Q'li;^  (see  on  cxxii.).  Duhm  suggests  that  the 
first  nNTl  may  have  been  miswritten  for  "^"2^. — 9.    Liturgical  (cxxv.  5). 


PSALM    CXXIX. 

X  KNTAMETERS.  A  companion  ^o  Ps.  cxxiv.  To  the  pious  community  which 
speaks  it  appears  as  if  the  long  series  of  N.  Arabian  outrages  was  finally 
closed,  or,  as  he  puts  it,  as  if  Yahwe  '  had  snapped  the  fetters  of  the  wicked.' 
Still  he  knows  tiiat  '  haters  of  Zion '  are  not  extwict,  and  utters  an  impassioned 
prayer  against  them.  If  we  ask,  who  the  'haters  of  Zion'  are,  the  answer 
is  that  like  the  '  wicked '  they  are  the  N.  Arabian  foes,  among  whom  Sanballat 
and  Tobiah   (if  these  figures  are  historical)  must  be  included.     Cp.  Neh.  ii.  10. 

For  ^mpjiD,  V.   2,  used  of  Israel,  cp.   IIos.  ii.   17,  xi.    i,  Jer.  ii.  2,  xxii.  21, 

xxxi.  19,  xxxii.  30,  Ezek.  xvi.,  xxiii.  3.  For  v.  ib,  cp.  cxxiv.  lb  (cxviii.  2a 
is  doubtful).     For  v.  3a  it  is  usual  to  compare  Isa.   Ii.  23,  but  the  parallelism 

is  imaginary.      Jlin  in  vv.   i  f.  as  cxx.  6,   cxxiii.  4. 


PSALM    CXXIX. 


Marked.     Of  the  Ishviaelites. 


193 


I     Greatly  have  they  afflicted  me  from  my  youth   up,  |  let 
Israel  say, 
Greatly  have  they  afflicted  me  from  m}-  youth  up,  |  3-ea, 

they  have  prevailed  against  me, —  2 

The  sons  of  Jerahmeel  and  the  Ashhurites,  |  the  Arabians 

and  the  Ishmaelites,i  3 

+But+ Yahwe,  the  righteous,  has  snapped  |  the  cords  of  the 

wicked.  4 


Let  them  have  to  retreat  with  shame —  |  all  the  haters 

of  Zion  !  5 

Let  them  be  as  grass  on  the  housetops  |  which  the  east 

wind  has  scorched  ;  6 

With   which   no    reaper    fills    his   hand,  |   no   binder   of 

sheaves  his  lap,  7 

Nor  do  passers-by  give  the  greeting,  [  '  Yahwe's  blessing 
upon  vou.'  - 

Critical  Notes.  2.  M  '^'^  ^^'^'^^b  D^  •  But  is  this  possible  ?  Again 
and  again  Israel  had  been  overpowered  by  its  neighbours.  Our  doubt 
will  be  confirmed  by  an  examination  of  the  text  of  v.  3.  Most  probably 
^^7  and  ■''^  arc  competing  readings  ;  we  have  to  choose  between  '  yet 
they  prevailed  not'  and  '  they  even  prevailed  against  me  '  (cf.  the  com- 
bination of  readings — ^J'^^7--in  xxvii.  13).     It  is  best  to  read  "^^  •I'^D^  DD  • 

:t       - 

3-  M  DDiaya':'  •\2'''^tir\  wf^h  ^tTi  -^iirbv  (Kt.),  or  djI^ji'd'? 

T     -:-:  ••.•:•.•  .    :  :t      .  -     "=■  t  •-:-: 

(Kr.).      The  idea  of  'ploughing  on  the  back'    is    peculiar.       Does    ^;i 

really  mean  'back'?  BDB  affirms  this,  and  refers  also  to  Ezek.  x.  12, 
a  doubtful  passage.  If  we  had  to  insist  on  the  meaning  'back' just  here, 
surely  we  should  prefer  to  read  ''")il~'737-     But  the  figure  presupposed  by 

M  IS  most  improbable.  Isa.  li.  23  gives  only  a  distant  analogy  ;  we 
should  certainly  have  to  alter  '  ploughmen '  into  '  passengers '  to  make 
it  worth  referring  to.  There  are  two  clues  to  the  mystery  of  v.  3. 
(l)  G  renders  fVi  tqv  vanuv  fxov  (TtKraivov  01  iifiapruikoi,  i.e.  for  D"'Ii^"ir7 
it  reads  DVIi*"!  !  (-)  QmjJ/Q'?,  about  which  the  ancients  doubted 
greatly,  and  from  which  moderns  have  been  far  too  hasty  in  deriving  a 
word  r\'y^t2,   'field  for  ploughing,'  begins  with  a  group  of  letters  which 

'  Jerahmeel.  ^  We  bless  you  in  Yahwe's  name, 

II.  O 


194  THE    PSALMS. 

sometimes  represents  '^NDHT'  (see  on  cxw.  3),  while  the  final  letters 
Dj~|T  may  liave  come  from  Dm*?,  which  occupies  a  corresponding 
position  in  a  suspicious  group  of  letters  in  cxxv.  5,  where  it  almost 
certainly  comes  from  t'lDJl  = '^hJ^QlfV  This  throws  a  light  on  the 
D''i?ttn ,  which  C  read  for  □"•li'in  •  "1 ,  <is  probably  in  some  other 
cases  in  the  Pss.,  may  represent  D^"^^ti/^}  ■  Now  we  can  see  what 
7'.  3  is  ;  it  is  a  list  of  the  names  of  the  chief  peoples  which  '  afflicted' 
Israel  and  '  prevailed  against '  him.  D^ti'in  V^dn  represents  a  ditto- 
graphed  D"'"in;:>S-  ID'^INH,  like  imjr  inxlvlii.  5,  represents  D''2"}r- 
''3:1"'?^  represents,  not  ^^fbv  (Houb.),  but  '7NQnT""'2^.  Read, 
therefore, — 

4.    M  jli^y,  according  to  Bii,  the  harness  of  the  ox.      From  our 
newly-won  point  of  view  we  must  read  ^Jl')^^  (ii.  3?). 

6.    M  tO''   ^bu}  DDI^'I)-     On  the  versions,  see  note  in  /'i-.'",  and 
••T       -T  -  :'-v 

Hii.  ad  he.  The  true  (]  had  fBaudijaai  (cp.  Theodoret).  2  has  (kkov- 
Xijo-ai,  whence  Bii, 'before  it  shoots  up  in  the  stalk.'  Von  Ortenberg 
{Tcxtkritik ,  30),  Wellh.,  and  Duhm  would  read  ^711,  a  niore  likely  word, 
doubtless,  than  "^V-,  'to  draw  out,  or  off.'  But  DQlpIi'  is  equally 
troublesome  ;  is  not  Hebrew,  but  Aramaic.  Targ.  suggests  a  remedy. 
It  gives  two  renderings,  (i)  y^iiH  Dip  ]D"T,  and  (2)  Vi.'C:r\\>  mi  ^n^< 
T^^n^inj^T  n"*!  TJn:.  Herz,  reading  pnj,  suggests  ^t^S  D^ljT^ 
"V'y  ■  I5ut  n^j"1J ,  'blows  (upon  it),'  seems  a  better  reading,  and 
suggests  P)"T;t;,  'scorches";  cp.  Isa.  xxxvii.  27.  Read  ^p^^IJ  DHpIi^  [So, 
too,  recently  Marti,  Jesaia.,  p.  156,  'perhaps  "^  D"'"TpIi^-'  Grimme 
(1903)  reads  c^':)'^^!  D"*lpIi^   omitting   '<i)y   as  a  gloss.       J.    P.    Peters 

(1884)  d"?::'.] 

-   T 

8.   The  gloss  {v.  Zb)  is  tautological,  and  metrically  superfluous. 


PSALM    CXXX. 

A  KNTAMETERS.  A  lerveni  appeal  for  the  destruction  of  tliose  enemies  of  the 
'  tear  of  \'ahwt; '  {i.e.  of  true  religion) — Maacah  and  Jerahmeel  (cp.  Pss.  cxl., 
cxlii.).  The  iron  had  entered  into  the  soul  of  the  writer  of  this  pathetic 
poem.  A  later  editor,  working  probably  on  a  text  that  was  already  corrupt, 
moditied  parts  of  it  so  as  to  make  the  psalm  an  expression  of  liumble  faith 
in  Nahwe's  covenant-love  suitable  for  his  own  antl  for  each  coming  age.  We 
cannot  therefore  interpret  this  psalm  in  the  manner  of  Luther  and  Wesley. 
It  is  in  its  original  form  an  appeal  for  help  in  special  historical  circumstances 
(cp.  OP,  54).      There  is   no  consciousness  of  any  special  sin  of  the  pious  com- 


PSALM    CXXX.  ig5 

munity,  but  the  sore  troubles  under  which  Israel  still  sufters  prove  to  him 
that  there  are  'unobserved  sins'  (cp.  xix.  13)  whicli  have  excited  the  divine 
wratli.  The  psalmist  pleads  for  a  restoration  of  favour  ;  for  further  success 
of  Jerahmeel  would  mean  the  extinction  of  true  religion.  '  Who  will  give  thee 
thanks  in  Sheol '  (vi.  6). 

Marked.        Of  the  Ishmaelites.  I 

I     Because  of  those  of  Maacah  I  call  upon  thee,  O  Yahwe  !  | 

^  hearken  to  \\\y  voice,  2 

Attentive  be  thine  ears  |  to  the  sound  of  my  supplica- 
tion ! 

Didst  thou  keep  iniquities  in  view,  O  Yahwe  !  |  who,  O 

Lord  !   could  stand  ?  3 

Make  an  end  of  Maacah  and  Jerahmeel  |  because  of  thy 

fear.  _|. 

My  soul  waits  for  Yahwe,  |  and  for  his  word  do  I  hope  :  5 

From  Misrim  even  to  Jerahmeel  |  he  will  deliver  Israel. 

For    with    Yahwe    is    lovingkindness,   |   and    plenteous 

redemption,  6 

And  he  will  redeem  Israel  |  from  those  of  Jerahmeel.^ 

2.     Jli3It'p  ^^JT^i  •      Cp.  2  Chr.  is  to  be  tempered  by  the  recollection 

vi.  40,  vii.  15;  Neh:\:6,    II.      Duhm  '''^'    ''^^    divine    Judge    who,    in   bis 

doubtstheindebtednessof  theChronicler  l^^f.'^y'  S'-^^^s  pardon,  can  also,  m  his 

fur  this  phrase  to  the  writer  of  Ps.  cxxx.  ■!"'  ''^'     ^"^  he  passage,  however, 

But  see  on   Ps.  cxxxii.-4.  The  tradi-  '^  >  ""  ,";f^"f  P'^'"'  ^"^1  ^^^^  "«'  ^^ 

tional  text  is  best  explained  as  a  state-  "".*^^^%"°^  \  ^^^  '^"^'^"^  ^^^^^°"^  (^P- 

ment  that  the  joyful  sense  of  forgiveness  ^'^-'Z^^'  '^S^,  p.  662).     .See  cnt.  n. 

Critical  Notes.      Cp.    Haupl's    very   bold    restoration    of    the    text, 
Hebrnica,  Jan.  1886,  pp.  98-106. 

I.     !M    D'pQiJQr^  ;    cp.    Ixix.    3,    15,    where    the    word    occin-s    in    a 

figurative  description  of  Israel's  rapid  approach  to  national  extinction. 
There  is,  however,  no  such  figure  here  ;  the  speaker  does  not  say  that  he 
is  'sinking  into  the  floods.'  Indeed,  from  the  psalm  in  its  present  form 
we  get  no  clear  idea  what  the  trouble  was  by  which  the  speaker  was 
perturbed.  The  historical  colouring  has  to  be  restored.  Considering 
that  p'O^  again  and  again  {c.i^.  Ix.  8)  represents  JHD^D.  we  may  reasonably 
read  here  DTIDl'QQ ;    cp.  parallel  psalms  (xxviii.,  xxxi.,  cxvi.,  cxliii.,  and 

especially  cxl.). — Omit  ^3TX  with  Duhm  (metre). 

'  O  Lord.  -  Ishmael. 


196  THE    PSALMS. 

4.  M  i^'\^n  ]yDb  ntl^hu;!  ^^y"''3.  On  the  exegetlcal  difficulty 
of  this  passage,  see  above,  and  reference  to  Biithgen.  (a)  ^}"^^^l  first 
requires  notice.  Haupt  (op.  at.)  would  read  J^^ITI,  'a  rare  synonym  of 
riKT'  (/•'•■  'religion').  Jerome  {0pp.,  Mignc,  i.  865  f.,  Episf.  cvi.) 
recognizes  a  reading  '  Thira.'  Griitz,  ^H^i^  ;  Duhm,  T|21I0-  Haupt's 
word,  however,  is  a  fiction,  those  of  Gratz  and  Duhm  are  too  weak 
What  we  require  (see  exeg.  n.)  is  TJJIJ^T-  This  easily  became  corrupted 
into  'Jinn  and  rn^H  (cp.  on  i.  2)  the  former  of  which  readings  is 
presupposed  by  2  e,  and  may  (cp.  the  case  of  G  in  Isa.  xlii.  4)  underlie 
the  traditional  Septuagint  rendering  eveKev  Tor,  oi-o^iHToj  a-ov  (a  scribe's 

alteration  of  voanv  nov'^).      {/>)  nn^'?Dn  ;    cp.   IDnil,  t-.  7.     JllH^j'^D 

T   .  :    -  V  V  -  .  : 

occurs  in  Neh.  ix.  17,  Dan.  ix.  9  ;  n'j'D  in  Ixxxvi.  5  ;  while  n7D,  'to 
forgive,'  is  common.  It  is  odd,  however,  that  the  speaker,  when  in 
such  sore  straits,  should  not  directly  beseech  for  forgiveness,  and 
the  clause  'DH  ^Qyl  does  not  connect  well  with  what  follows.  What 
we  expect  is  a  petition,  the  ground  of  which  would  be  given  in  '^^^  ]},^D^, 
and  if  possible  we  desiderate  an  ethnic.  Most  probably  niTt'DH 
should  be  'pMQni^  (or  — ^1),  and  a  verb  with  possibly  another  ethnic 
underlies  "It^V  ^2-  (^)  ^^  ^^  those  two  words  we  cannot  have  much 
doubt.  ']Dy,  as  so  often,  represents  DD^rj  ;  ^D  may  come  from  '73, 
I.e.   n'73.     Read  therefore,  "?J/1S"i;   ])lt2h    \  'Hl^T  DDVD  H^D- 

5  f.     This  couplet  (=;-'7'.  5-7<;m)  has  received  dittographic  accretions. 
Read  probably,  — 

.  :  T  T  :.  :  .   :  -  t:'. 

Line  6  alone  requires  justification.    □^"IT^tS/rj  'more  than  watchmen  (look 

out)  for  the  morning  '  is  improbable.  The  ellipsis  of  a  verb  is  strange,  nor 
is  it  clear  who  these  anxious  watchmen  are.  G  renders  dni)  (pvXaKfjs  Trpcotas 
Kol  /xfxp'  vvKTik  ;  J,  '  a  vigilia  matutina  usque  ad  vigiliam  matutinam.'  G's 
rendering  presupposes  n>yi;;i  ')p2n  Di:2Z''^D-  Now  both  -)p2 
and  nb'h  are  current  corruptions  of  7K;^nn\  while  r\'^!2Vi^  niay 
possibly  come  from  "inii'i^.     Thus,  rejecting  a  dittogram.  we  get  'from 

Ashhur  even  to  Jerahmcel,'  while  the  DH'Sli'I^S  of  M  may  (cp.  ~ni£'\':3, 
cxliii.  10)  come  from  D"'"lJiQi^-  In  this  case,  7n^  must  represent  a  verb 
meaning  'he  will  gatiier'  or  'deliver.'     Read   y'?n^,    and  insert  "Jlhi. 

mn'~'^S  =  'n~l^,  a  marginal  gloss.  The  whole  context  now  becomes 
clear.  The  prayer  in  /.  4  is  sure  of  an  answer,  for  it  is  based  on  a  '  word  ' 
of  promise,  viz.  such  a  prophecy  as  Isa.  xxvii.  12.  Then,  in  //.  7,  8  the 
psalmist    sums   up.     'For  (=in  fact)  Yahwi's   lovingkindness    and  his 


PSALMS  cxxxi.,  cxxxir.  197 

design  to  redeem  Israel  are  eternal  ;  he  will  certainly  redeem  Israel 
from  Jerahmeelite  oppression.' — .M  Vni^iy  b'3'2,  '.''•  '  from  all  his 
iniquities';  'punishments'  would  be  arbitrary.  In  xxv.  22  (parallel), 
Tjin:;  'p^TD.     Read, however,  D'''7^^^J^■»V0.     Cp.  "»m'D  "pID,  Ixxxvii.  7  ; 

Dmjp^'?,  cxxx.  4.  Both  these  represent  D  v>^!2m^ .  T^  has  dropped 
out  before  I?,  or  rather  has  become  3- 


PSALM   CXXXI. 

1  KNTAMETERS.  The  speaker  iirofesses  his  humility  and  self-abasement. 
According  to  S  (also  Gratz  and  Haupt),  the  psalm  refers  to  the  high-priest 
Jeshua.  The  central  portion  probably  contained  some  reference  to  Jerahmeelite 
oppression.  The  editor  received  it  in  a  corrupt  form,  but  succeeded  in  making 
out  of  this  an  edifying  substitute  for  the  true  text.       Cp.  Smend,  p.  138. 

Marked.     Of  the  Jsliniaelites.      Of  'Afab-cthan.  i 

I     Not  haughty  !   O   Yahwt-,  is  my  heart,   ]   not    lofty  are 
mine  eyes, 
Neither  move  I  amidst  great  matters,  |  and  things  too 
arduous  for  me. 

,     But  I  bowed  down  and  quieted  (?)  |  my  soul  ■•-  *  2 

Jerahmeel    *     '■'  |       '■'•■     '■'■'• 

Hope,  O  Israel,  for  Yahwe  |  both  now  and  for  evermore. 

Critical  A'ates.  3.  M  S'?"D^?•  This  may  be  right  (see  Kon., 
^SSS.s";  §391^)-  I^i-it  Herz's  suggestion  of  □7^^^  is  plausible. — 
M'"/T'Vi',  'I  have  levelled,'  /.t-. 'composed'.?  .Surely  not.  G,  franeivo- 
(f)p,;vovi'  =  T\')np;  cp.  T[''W,  fi'om  "'jiriDliN  cxix.  30.  What  follows  looks 
like  a  series  of  attempts  to  read  an  ill-written  '^NOm^  (7D^  corrupt,  as 
^.(^^.  in  Judg.  viii.  21,  26). 


PS.\LM  CXXXI  I. 

1  Ri.METERS.  Two  sccnes  from  tlie  history  of  the  temple,  both  psychologically 
treated,  i.e.  with  regard  to  what  might  be  the  feelings  and  sentiments  of  the 
persons  concerned.  The  scenes  arc  : — i.  David's  zealous  preparations  for  the 
Ijuilding  of  llie  temple,  and  2.  the  dedication,  or  rather  (since  there  is  no  mention 
of  David's  son,  and  7'.  11  is  plainly  the  reminisccnse  of  a  later.  Scripture-loving 
age)  the  re-dedication  of  Valuvc's  sanctuary,  but  what  sanctuary?  The  temple 
at  Jerusalem,  or  that  which  many  passages  compel  us  to  suppose  to  have  existed 
at  Beth-jcrahmeel  in  the  Ncgeb?  The  analogy  of  Pss.  cxxii.,  cxxv.,  and  cxxxiii. 
permit,  and  the  critical  necessities  of  r.  6  require,  a  decision  in  favour  of  the 
latter.     See  notes  on  //.  3  ff.,   11,  and  Introduction. 


igS  THE    PSALMS. 

Diilim  denies  the  genuineness  of  w.  9  f.,  wliich  he  holds  to  be  interpolated 
from  2  Chr.  vi.  41  f.,  only  with  a  sUght  alteration  in  accordance  with  v.  16. 
Surely  this  is  not  the  most  natural  view.  We  need  not,  however,  suppose  that  the 
Chronicler  himself  borrowed  from  our  psalm.  It  seems  probable  that  it  was 
a  late  redactor  of  Chronicles  who  introduced  the  passage  referred  to.  For  Dr. 
J.  P.  Peters'  view  on  Pss.  cxxxii.-cxxxiv.  (to  which  he  assigns  a  different 
origin  from  the  preceding  '  pilgrim-i)salms'),  seeyAV-,  1894,  p.  39.  On  Zenner's 
view  on  Ps.  cxxxii.,  see  Kiinig,  Stylistih,  pp.  352  ff.  ;  I).  II.  Midler,  Strophen- 
baii,  p.  7. 

Marked.     Of  tlw  Ishmaelites.  I 


'■■     he  swore  to  Yahwe,  2 

And  vowed  to  the  Steer  of  Jacob, 

'  I  will  not  enter  the  tent  where  I  dwell,  3 

Nor  go  up  on  the  couch  where  I  rest, 
No  sleep  will  I  give  to  mine  eyes,  4 

No  slumber  to  mine  eyelids, 

Until  I  obtain  a  place  for  Yahwe,  5 

10  A  habitation  for  the  Steer  of  Jacob.' 

Behold,  ye  Ishmaelites  in  Ephrathah,i  6 

Ye  Ishmaelites  in  the  highland  of  Jair  :  2 
Let  us  enter  his  habitation,  7 

Let  us  fall  low  before  his  footstool. 

Arise,  O  Yahwe  !  to  take  thy  resting-place,  8 

Thou  and  thy  victorious  ark : 

May  thy  priests  be  arrayed  with  +\\\s\  righteousness,     9 
And  thy  pious  ones  sing  aloud  ! 

For  the  sake  of  thy  servant  David,  lO 

20  Do  not  thou  repulse  thy  pious  ones. 

Yahwe  has  sworn-'  in  his  faithfulness,  1 1 

And  from  it  he  will  not  go  back; 
'  Offspring  of  thy  body  [perpetually] 
Will  I  set  upon  th}'  throne. 

If  thy  sons  observe  mine  ordinance,  12 

And  mine  admonitions  which  I  teach  them. 
As  a  recompense,  their  sons  perpetually 
Shall  sit  upon  thy  throne.' 

^  Ashhur-jcrahmeel  (r'.  i).  "  Gibeath-ishmael  {r\  i). 

•*  To  David. 


PSALM    CXXXII. 

For  Yahvve  has  chosen  Zion, 
30  He  has  desired  it  for  his  own  dwelhng  : 

'  This  is  my  perpetual  resting-place, 
Here  will  I  dwell,  for  I  desire  it. 

Her  princes  I  will  bless, 

Her  poor  I  will  satisfy  with  bread, 

Her  priests  I  will  array  with  +my+  deliverance. 

Her  pious  ones  shall  sing  aloud. 

There  will  I  make  a  horn  to  shoot  forth  for  David, 
I  have  prepared  a  lamp  for  mine  anointed  : 
His  enemies  I  will  array  with  dishonour, 
40  But  upon  himself  shall  his  diadem  sparkle.' 


199 

15 

j6 

17 


I  f.  The  received  text  has, '  Remem- 
ber, O  Yahwe  !  to  David  all  the  trouble 
that  he  took,'  though  the  last  word 
(1/l1il^*)  is  difficult,  and  it  is  not  easy 

to  see  how  David  can  be  personally 
rewarded  at  a  future  time  for  his  long- 
past  exertions.  May  we  then  suppose 
that  David  is  to  be  recomjienscd  in  tiie 
person  of  his  descendant  {c't.  17  f.), 
accordini;  to  the  later  doctrine  of  the 
merits  of  the  fathers  (Weber,  Judische 
Thcologie,^^^  292)  ?  If  the  received  text 
is  right,  there  is  no  better  solution,  but 
how  does  this  agree  with  J^^Ii'J  Iti^N, 
'  he  who  swore  '  ?  Clearl)'  tlie  text  is 
wrong.     See  crit.  note. 

3    ff.      Swore    to    Yahwe.     &c. 

Duhm  (p.  279)  and  Sellin  {SeriiOl/aM, 
]).  185)  lay  great  stress  on  tlie  dis- 
crepancy between  the  language  of  the 
*  vow '  here  ascribed  to  David  and  the 
statements  in  2  S.  vi.-vii.  2  ;  the  pas- 
sage commonly  adduced  as  an  ilkistra- 
tion  (2  S.  vii.  2)  is  rather  fitted  to  stir 
up  doubts  as  to  the  Kiblical  basis  of 
the  psalmist's  words.  To  explain  this 
difficulty,  .Sellin  supposes  that  the 
'  David'  spoken  of  is  really  Zerubbabel, 
who  was  regarded  for  a  time  as  the 
Messianic  king ;  Duhm,  that  the 
psalmist  draws  from  '  a  legend  un- 
known to  us,  perliaps  in  a  life  of 
David,  whicii  has  not  come  down  to  us, 
at  least  in  the  part  with  which  we  are 
concerned.'  Tlie  latter  view  seems  the 
nearer  to  the  truth.  In  CriL  Bib., 
jip.  26S  'i'i. ,  reason  is  given  for  holding 
that  tlie  place  to  which   David  brought 


the  ark  was  Beth-jerahmcel  in  the 
Negeb,  where  (not  less  than  at  Jeru- 
salem) the  hill  with  the  citadel  was 
called  Siyyon  (a  corruption,  most  pro- 
bably, of  'Ishmael').  The  conquest 
of  this  place  finally  secured  his  hold  on 
the    A>geb — the   '  holy    land '    of    the 

Israelites.  '  Obtain  '  (^}iiQ)  in  /.  9 
means  '  win  by  conquest. '-3p^^  1^3N- 
So  Isa.  i.  34,  xlix.  26,  and  especially 
Gen.  xlix.  24.  In  /.  10  the  deity  thus 
designated  is  represented  as  dwelling  in 
the  temple.  This  agrees  with  the  view 
that  1^3h}   is   more    properly   pointed 

"I'^J^  (cp.'  £nc.  Bib.,  '  Names,'  §  121) 
and  is  to  be  rendered  '  Steer '  (cp. 
W1   n'•2^}),   and   that   this  is   con- 

T   T  ..    .    - 

nected  with  the  worship  of  Yahwe 
under  the  symbolic  form  of  a  steer 
overlaid  with  gold,  which  was  specially 
practised  in  the  Negeb  (see  Crit.  Bib. 
on  I  K.  xii.  25  ff.)  ;  also  with  the  view 
that  the  sanctuary  '  obtained  '  by  David 
was  not  at  Jerusalem,  but  at  Beth- 
jerahmeel. —  The  ienl.  In  2  S.  vii.  2 
David  speaks  of  dwelling  in  a  'house 
of  cedar.'  Here,  he  may  speak  as  one 
who  leads  the  tent-life  of  a  warrior 
(2  S.  xi.  11). 

II.  The  critics  have  rightly  seen 
that  this  is  the  fundamental  passage. 
The  text  of  M  runs,  '  Lo,  we  heard  o. 
it  in  Ephrathah,  we  found  it  in  the  fields 
(or,  field)  of  Jaar,'  which  most  explain, 
'  We  heard  that  the  ark  was  at  Eph- 
rathah, and  (or,  but)  found  it  at  Kirjath- 


200 


THE    PSALMS 


iearim.'  Some  think  Ephralhah  means 
"Ephraim,  and  tlial  Shiloh  is  referred 
to;  otlicrs,  reminding  us  (see  Del.) 
that  in  i  Chr.  ii.  50  Kirjalh-jearim  is  in 
the  fiimily  of  Ephralhah,  suppose  thai 
Ephralhah  was  the  name  of  the  district 
round  Kirjath-jearim.  The  latter  place, 
it  is  true,  is  prominent  in  the  stoiy  of 
the  ark  (see  i  S.  vi.  21,  vii.  i  f.  :  cp. 
2  S.  vi.  2),  Inil  this  does  nol  justify  ihe 
theory  that  Kirjalh-jearim  also  bore  the 
name  of  Jaar  or  S'de  Jaar.  And  how 
can  the  fern,  suffix  H — be  made  to  refer 

T 

to  ]"1"1S ,  which  does  not  occur  till 
<'.  8,  and  which  is  only  exceptionally 
(l  S.  iv.  17,  2  Chr.  viii.  11)  fern.? 
Hence  Biithgen  has  struck  out  a  pecu- 
liar view  of  Tiis  own — '  We  have  heard 
of  it  {i.e.  of  David's  doings)  in  Eph- 
ralhah (Iklhlehem),  and  spread  the 
news    (mjSijin)    in    the    region    of 

woods'  (  =  'in  Wald  und  Feld').     If, 
however,    we    use    our    experience    of 
recurrent   types    of    corruption,     there 
cannot  be  much  doubt  as  to  the   true 
reading    and    rendering.      The    names 
'  Ishmael'  and  'Jerahmeel'  cannot  be 
mistaken,  underlying  three  of  the  words 
in  M's  text,  and  with  this  the  undeniable 
reference  to   '  Ephrathah '  is  in  perfect 
harmony,   '  Ephrath  '    or    'Ephralhah,' 
not    less    than    '  Belh-lehem,'    being    a 
Negeb  name   (see   Crit.  Bib.   on  Gen. 
XXXV.    16,    I    S.  i.   i).     We    might,  of 
course,   suppose   7'.    6   to   be   a    gloss, 
staling  where  the    '  place   for   Yah  we' 
was,   viz.    in   the   Ephrathile  or  Jerah- 
meelite   Ishmael.     But   some   link  be- 
tween V.   5  and  V.   7  is  indispensable, 
and  this  link  is  obtained  by  reading  as 
proposed  in  crit.  note.     Accepting  this, 
the  speaker   of  v.  6  is  some  prominent 
Israelite  who  dwelt  in  the  Negeb  in  the 
post-exilic   period,   and   who,  like  the 
author   of  Pss.    cxxii.   and   cxxv.,  was 
devoted  to  the  temple  of  Vahwe  in  the 
Negeb — such   a    one    as    the   writer   of 
Isa.    xix.    18    (see    Crit.   Jiib.  ad  loc). 
He     summons    his    fellow-Israelites — 
whom,  in  accordance  with  an  archaic 
usage,  he  calls  '  Ishmaelites,'  because 
tiiey   dwelt    in    Ishmael    or   Jerahmeel 
{j.c.    the   Negeb) — to   enter  the  m-Mly 
/-tf5/<';Y^/ temple,  and  unite  in  prayer  to 
Yahwe   to    take    up    his  abode    in    the 
sanctuary.  Archaizing  again,  he  couj^les 
with  the  divine  name  a  mention  of  the 
ark.     As  a  conseciuence  of  the  presence 
of  the  numeii  he  expects  jierfect  pros- 
perity alike  for  the  priestly  aristocracy 


and  the  'pious'  latty.  ('Righteous- 
ness '  in  V.  9fl  means  Yahwe's  righteous 
gift  of  prosperity  —  not  'moral  inno- 
cence,' or  even  '  ritual  correctness.' 
The  latter  interpretation  would  imply 
that  the  psalmist  made  a  side-hit  at  the 
priests  as  deficient  in  'righteousness,' 
wliich  is  highly  improbable).  Lastly, 
the  speaker — as  the  spokesman  of  the 
community  —  beseeches  ^'ahwe  not  to 
re[)ulse  the  l/asidini  (see  crit.  note),  out 
of  regard  to  the  merits  of  David.  So, 
then,  the  psalmist  looks  forward  to  a 
Messianic  age,  when  the  central  spot 
in  the  estimation  of  true  Israelites  shall 
be  the  temple  in  the  Negeb.  See  Crit. 
Bill,  on  Isa.  Ixvi.  i  f.,  Ezek.  xl.  i  f., 
xlvii.  13. 

21-30.  The  psalmist  summarizes 
2  S.  vii.  12  ff.  No  fresh  divine  oracle 
is  needed,  for  '  hath  he  said,  and 
shall  he  not  do  it  ?  '  But  how  does  the 
jisalmist  understand  the  promise  in  v. 
12?  Surely  his  idea  is  that  there  will 
be,  nol  a  single  Messiah,  but  a  line  of 
Messianic  kings.  And  the  reason 
which  he  offers  for  this  expectation  is 
that  Yahwe  has  chosen  Zion  for  his 
perpetual  abode  ;  a  king  is  the  earthly 
guardian  of  the  divine  mansion.  Cp. 
Ixxviii.  68,  where  the  ciioice  of  Zion 
precedes  the  choice  of  David. 

31-40.  Yahwe  is  the  speaker.  Is 
there,  then,  a  fresh  oracle  after  all  j* 
No ;  the  passage  does  but  restate  the 
chief  particulars  in  the  Messianic  pro- 
mise. Abundant  food  for  the  poor 
(Joel  ii.  26)  ;  prosperity  and  warlike 
power  of  the  Davidic  house  (for 
phraseology,  cp.  Ixxxix.  18,  25,  Ezek. 
xxix.  21).  ^^DiJ^i  may  allude  to 
Jar.  xxiii.  5,  xxxiii.  15,  Zech.  iii.  8, 
vi.  12  (see  Del.),  ^ii^^  {v.  16)  defines 
Ihe  meaning  of  p^^  in  f.  9.     Cp.  Isa. 

Ixi.  10. — 38.  /  have  prepared  a  lamp. 
Cp.  I  K.  xi.  36,  XV.  4,  2  K.  viii.  19, 
2  Chr.  xxi.  7,  Prov.  xx.  20.  As  long 
as  the  lamp  shines,  the  family  survives. 
An  l'"gyptian  funerary  text  says, '  When 
this  tlame  is  prepared  for  him,  he  will 
escape  perishing  for  ever ;  his  spirit 
will  live  on  perpetually'  (Diimichen, 
ZA,  1883,  p.  11-15;  cp.  Erman,  ZA, 
1882,  p.  12).  Cp.  the  Jewish  custom 
of  keeping  a  lighted  lamp  in  the  death- 
chamber  for  seven  days  after  the 
funeral,  and  the  festival  of  lamps  in  the 
Punjab,  at  which  the  souls  of  ancestors 
visit  the  houses  (Frazer,  Golden  Boug/i'^'' 
ii.  176. 


PSALM    CXXXII.  201 

Critical  Noks.     i  f.  iM  ij-|i3l7~'?3  Ptti  111'?  mn>-")iDT.      The  diffi- 

••.       T        ••        •  T :  : 

culty  of  this  passage  as  a  whole  has  been  already  pointed  out  (see  exeg. 
note).  It  has  now  to  be  remarked  that  this  is  the  only  example  of  an 
infin.  Pual  with  suffix.  And  what  a  poor  sense  it  gives — "all  his  being 
bowed  down'  (or  'afflicted')  !  Perles  (after  G  S)  reads  ijll^^,  'his 
humility  '='  his  piety.'  But  this  is  surely  too  rare  a  word,  and  the 
general  difficulty  remains.  Very  probably  the  editor  recast  a  marginal 
gloss  consisting  of  the  words  '?^iyQI:;"'  r\^i:\  b'i^'^'HI^  ''\T\W'i^,  i-c 
Ashhur-jerahmeel,  Gibeath-ishmael;    ~)iZ)T  = 'i:'hi ,    *?  mH"' = '7hJ;:2m'' ; 

in  =  111:;^  (cp.  on  judg.  X.  i) ;   im^;?  =  n;?^^ :  ^2  r\\^-b)^v^'^'' 

(cp.  7_p^J^^^) — the  two  last  words  are  transposed.  The  whole  is  a  double 
gloss  on  //.  II,  12.  'Ephrathah'  is  explained  by  'Ashhur-jerahmeel,' 
'  the  highland  of  Jair '  by  '  Gibeath-ishmael ' ;  i.e. '  Ephrath '  was  ec[uiva- 
lent  to  'Ashhur'  and  'Jair'  to  '  Ishmael.' — 2.  "^"yVI  "l^i^ ,  'he  who 
swore'?  or  'because  he  swore'?  Not  improbably  "Tu!.'^^  comes  from 
~nc*St=:•^^^l^^^,  a  dittogram  (see  on  //.  i  f.).— 4,  10.— M  T:l^i  ;  see 
exeg.  n. — 11  f.  Admit  that  the  influence  which  on  the  whole  dominated 
both  in  the  early  and  in  the  later  history  was  N.  Arabian,  and  all  becomes 
clear.  ~)J7%  of  course,  represents  ~T'3/\  i.e.  '?i<iDn~l*  {c^.  Cj-H.  Bid.  on 
I  S.  xxii.  5) ;  ^J1~)^^<  =  rnSJ^  in  the  Negeb  (cp.  i  Chr.  ii.  19)  ; 
m:>';:2i:?  (cp.  '(:2t!,  cxli.  5  ;  D"'J(:Dlt^,  Isa.  xxviii.  I,  4  ;  and  ppDIi')  comes 
from  D''':?^J^DIi'^  and  mDNii::^  (cp.  ]Xi%lxxvii.  21,  and  I^^J,  Ixxviii.  12) 
also  from  this  word.     Read — 

nj"Ti3>i3  D^':'Nr!:3i:r>   n:in 

T  T  :  V  :  •      ••  :  :  •  ••  . 

For  the  second  ''^V^  we  should  perhaps  read  D^t'N.'jrn*  ;  such  a 
repetition  is  most  probally  often  due  to  scribes. 

16.  For  "^Ty  G  erroneously  presupposes  TJIO  (cp.  on  Ixxxix.  20). — 
20.  M  ^n^*yi;:j.  An  editor  of  Chronicles  (2  Chr.  vii.  .\2a  ;  see  introd.) 
understood  z'.  10  as  a  petition  for  Solomon.  Olsh.  and  Del.  accept  this 
view.  Hitzig  and  Hupfeld,  however,  think  that  (strange  as  it  may  seem) 
David  is  meant,  and  Wellhausen  holds  that  'the  "Anointed,"  originally 
referring  to  Solomon,  is  applied  here  to  Israel  (cp.  xxviii.  8),'  and  the 
present  writer  thought  in  1891  that  here  and  in  xxviii.  8,  Ixxxiv.  10,  the 
'  Anointed '  was  probably  a  high  priest  in  Persian  times  {OP,  199,338, 
350).  The  three  passages  referred  to  inust  be  taken  together,  and  in 
all  of  them  the  best  sense  is  obtained  by  reading,  not  n^li'D.  but  l^DH- 

21.    Omit   '^'\'^')  (gloss),  and  read  ^^1^.^^<21.     jl^hi  cannot  be  accus. 


202  THE    PSALMS. 

to  y2'i£?J,  and  i^  not  naturally  taken  as  the  casus  adverbialis  (T). 
—23.  Insert  lynV  («'•  i-).  fo''  metre.— 33.  M  HTi; .  C  (true  text)  tvi; 
6i]pav  (corrupted  in  J<,  cp.  \g.,  into  x'}/J«'')-  ^^"t  '  nihil  est  in  venaiione, 
sivc  iiOo,  vel  adversum,  vel  simile  pauperibus.'     Read  nnii,'  (Houb.)- 

'  T       V  T 


PSALM    CXXXIII. 

1  EM  AMliTiiR.s.  I'erhaps  the  most  difficult  of  all  the  psalms.  The  exegetical 
problems  are  great,  and  the  resulting  critical  problem — viz.  how  the  psalm  as  a 
whole  is  to  be  understood — is  proportionally  great.  Assuming  the  correctness 
of  the  text  it  has  been  held,  (i)  that  the  psalm  describes  the  pleasure  and  profit 
of  the  meeting  of  Israelites  at  Jerusalem  at  the  great  festivals,  (2)  that  it  is  an 
admonition  to  those  w  hose  constant  residence  at  Jerusalem  might  lead  to  friction 
(especially  Zerubhabel  and  Jeshua).  Kirkpatrick  would  connect  the  psalm  with 
is'eliemiah's  efforts  to  re-people  Jerusalem  (Neh.  xi.  i  ft".),  so  that  it  would  become 
an  ideal  picture  of  the  benefits  of  a  '  strong  and  united  metropolis,  at  once  the 
religious  and  political  centre  of  the  country.'  This  is  in  accordance  with  his 
interpretation   of  cxxii.   3,  where   he   thinks  it    possible    '  that    the    sight   of   the 

restored  city  [T^FT^    H'^'iminii^]  is  to  the  poet's  eye  an  emblem  of  the  mutual 

harmony  of  its  inhabitants  or  of  the  unity  of  the  nation.'  The  two  psalms  are  no 
doubt  parallel.  But  the  conclusion  at  which  we  have  arrived  respecting  the  text 
of  cxxii.  3  may  well  make  us  doubt  any  inference  based  on  the  supposed  accuracy 
of  the  text.  When  we  look  into  the  details,  this  critical  scepticism  is  more  than 
justified.  '  Aaron's  beard  '  is  surely  a  needless  importation  of  the  ancestor  of  the 
legal  priests.  Not  less  full  of  improbability  is  v.  3.  Apparently  the  psalmist 
mentions  the  points  from  which  and  to  which  the  dew  (that  precious  gift  of 
heaven,  Deut.  xxxiii.  13,  28)  descends.  The  summit  of  Ilermon  is  one  of  these 
points,  the  '  mountains  of  Zion  '  are  the  other.  Vet  surely  it  is  impossible  to 
maintain  that  the  dew  on  the  bare  heights  around  Jerusalem  are  comparable  to  the 
proverbially  abundant  dew  on  the  range  of  Hermon.  Attempts  no  doubt  have 
been  made  to  explain  and  justify  this  unnatural  combination  (see  Eiic.  Bib., 
'  Dew,'  §  2(^),  as  well  as  the  strange  phrase  '  Aaron's  beard'  in  v.  2.  But  the 
only  real  remedy  is  to  criticize  the  text.  (Iriitz,  Bickell,  and  even  Duhm  have  not 
been  radical  enough.  Nor  is  it  enough  to  suggest  with  Land  (  Theol.  7'i/dsc/irift, 
1S72,  pp.  572-575)  that  z'.  3  may  be  an  interpolation  due  to  a  later  pilgrim,  who 
also  inserted  the  reference  to  Aaron.  But  the  second  half  of  f.  3  is  indis[)ensable, 
and  the  difficult  words  Qli^  and  Q^TI  can  l)e  accounted  for  by  critical  means. 

T  .  - 

What,  then,  is  the  solution  of  the  general  critical  problem  ?  What  is  the 
object  and  significance  of  the  psalm  in  its  original  form  ?  It  is  a  statement  of  the 
blessedness  of  dwelling  in  Beth-jerahmeel — a  city  already  highly  honoured  by 
I'zekiel  (see  on  I's.  cxxii.)  as  the  most  sacred  part  of  the  Holy  Land,  based  on  the 
ground  that  Yahwe  had,  for  all  ages,  attached  a  special  blessing  to  that  spot.  The 
editor  of  course  looked  for  something  better. 

Marked.      Cft/w  hhinaelites.      Of  'Arab-etluxn.  i 

]      Behold,  luiw  good   aiul   how  pleasant   it  is  |  to  dwell  in 
Jerahmeel,^ 
For  there-  Yahwe  appointed  |  a  blessing  for  ever.  3«/S, /^ 

*  Ishmael.     Ashluir.     Jerahmeel.      Kena/.     Hermon.     Zion  (;'.  2). 
[In]  Jerahmeel. 


PSALM    CXXXIV.  203 

Critical  Notes.  (Title.)  m'?  not  known  to  C;  (A*T)  J  T.  — i.  M  TVlt 
irr^'Di)  D^nhi  nIl^^^  Dil  is  awlcward,  and  is  not  recognized  by  Vss. 
According  to  Ewald  {Psalvwn),  DJI  strengthens  in''  ;  but  his  reference 
to  his  Lchrln(c/i,  §  352^,  does  not  justify  this  view.  Apart  from  this,  how 
vague  the  statement  is  !  How  is  it  '  sweet'  for  brothers  to  live  together  ? 
To  suppose  a  reference  to  the  'brothers  '  Zerubbabel  and  Jeshua  (Griitz), 
will  not  do.  For  these,  it  is  supposed,  were  rivals  ;  we  must  not  render 
in''  '  in  harmony.'  Since  there  are  other  indications  of  names  in 
vv.  2  f,  it  is  probable  .that  we  have  to  read  '?^^^2nT;l  HIIV-  Q^ni^, 
["^JQj),  and  nn^  are  all  regular  corruptions  of  fragments  of  'n~l^- 

(Gloss.)  The  text  refuses  to  yield  a  good  sense.  No  wonder,  because 
the  editor  has  had  to  exercise  his  divining  faculty  on  a  corruption  of  a 
series  of  ethnics  (partly  repeated  in  variants),  which  were  illustrative 
of  'Jerahmeel'  (/.  1).  pt^'LD]  and  bv  2"IID[n]  come  from  "TS^'i^li"  : 
]Dir\n  from  -in;^l^ ;  bv  n^  from  '?SDn~l'  ;  ]pT[n]  and  ]pT  from  T^ip  ; 
;TinN%  bv  lT[i:r],  and  >3  bv  from  'nT  ;  Vmi-t:  from  D^Jl^l  = 
'?^<Dn■^^  ;  '?:DD  from  ':)^<DnT  (cp.  b\!l  l"?.  ex.  3  -,  V^^b,  Isa.  viii.  6,  see 
Cfit.  Bib.),  nnn  also  from  'ni'' ;  pDin  and  ]V2i  are  both  popular 
corruptions  of  'nT*  and  'D'^"",  which  were  specially  attached  to 
mountains  in  the  Negeb. 

2.  Read  probably  nDIIl  (Bi.,  Du.).— □'•"n  is  troublesome.  Ub^Vb 
is  most  naturally  connected  with  niii,  and  Q^^n  spoils  the  metre.     As  in 

T  • 

xxxviii.  20  it  springs  from  '^J^romv  Probably  a  gloss  on  UV  (from 
"iD^='?M^r2Ii'^).  UV  in  M  does  not  admit  of  a  satisfactory  explanation. 
Cp.  deWette, 'D'vi;,  da/ii/i,  niiml.  wo  Briider  zusammenwohnen.' 


PSALM   CXXXIV. 

A  ENi'AMETKKS.      The  last   of  the   psalm.s   grouped   together   by  the  common 

title  r\'\byi2T\  "yV-     The  title,  if  what  we   may   regard   as   the   best    critical 

theory  be  adopted,  is  as  strikingly  appropriate  as  in  some  other  instances. 
P'or  from  our  point  of  view  it  is  practically  certain  that  v.  lO  defines  the 
situation  of  the  '  hou.se  of  Yahvve '  as  '  in  Jerahmeel '  (see  below).  In  other 
words,  the  psalm  was  written  for  the  temple  of  Jerahmeel  (see  on  I's.  cxxii.). 
A  chorus  summons  the  temple-ministers  to  praise  Vahwc,  and  these,  by  their 
leader,  respond  with  a  priestly  blessing  (cp.  c.wviii.  5,  Num.  vi.  24).  The 
ordinary  view,  however,  is  that  it  was  written  for  use  at  the  nightly  vigils  of 
the  Levites  in  the  Jerusalem  temple.  Cp.  I  Chr.  i\.  ^t,,  where,  as  usually 
understood,  we  read  of  singers  who  were  occupied  'day  and  night'  (l)ut  see 
Cril.  Bill.),  also  Jos.  f.  Ap.  i.  22,  Theophrastus  ap.  Torph.  Je  Abstin.  ii.  26 
(very  vague,  see  W.  R.  Smith,  Eiic.  Bib.  col.  3934,  foot),  and  the  Talmudic 
notices  in  Delitzsch.  But  why  should  the  night-servants  of  the  temple  be  specially 
favoured   by  a   psalmist?     Criltz   has   a   new   theory,     lie  boldly   connects  the 


204  THE    PSALMS. 

psalm  wilh  the  jiopular  rejoicing  at  ihe  ceremony  of  the  water-lihation  at 
the    Feast  o!"    Booths,   and  brings   it    clown   to   the   time   of  Salome  Alexandra 

(78  —  69  B.C.)-  /Tiy?2  (z'.  I*^)  refers,  he  thinks,  to  the  six  nights  of  the 
feast,  during  which  the  people  remained  in  the  temple-courts,  and  the  Levites 
sang  the  fifteen  '  Stufengesilnge '  (J/GIV/,  1879,  p.  241). 

Marked.     Of  the  Jshmaelites.  I 

I      Behold,  bless  ye  Yahwe,  |  all  ye  servants  of  Yahwe, 
Who  stand  in  the  house  of  Yahwe  '  |     '■'■  * 

Lift  up  your  Itands  to  the  sanctuary,  |  and  bless  Yahwe.  2 

Yahwe  bless  thee  out  of  Zion,-  I    "     '•'  3 

Critical  Notes.  It  is  highly  probable  that  Jl')':)'''?!  (/•  2)  is  a  corrup- 
tion of  '?l«iDnT'3-  For  a  parallel,  see  on  xvi.  7,  and,  for  a  similar  gloss, 
see  cxvi.  19.  Winckler  {AOF,  iii.  405)  reads  n^':'  ■mijn;^,  '  beim 
Anbruch  (?)  der  Nachts.'  Verse  3/'  is  apparently  an  interpolation  from 
cxv.  15(5  ;  it  is  a  trimeter,  and  therefore  not  wanted  here. 


PSALM    CXXXV.'^' 

I  RIMETERS.  An  unoriginal  passage  (cp.  cxiii.  i,  cxxxiv.  il>).  The  form 
of  cxxxv.  3  makes  it  a  necessary  assumption  that  -jv.  i,  2  form  an  independent 
little  psalm  (so  Bickell  and  Duhm),  which  is  in  fact  a  companion  to  the 
preceding  psalm. 

Of  the  Jerahmeclites.  i 

1  Praise  ye  the  name  of  Yahwe  ; 

Praise  him,  O  ye  servants  of  Yahwe  ; 

Ye  that  stand  in  the  house  of  Yahwe —  2 

In  the  courts  of  the  house  of  our  God. 


PSALAl    CXXXV.'^^ 

J.  KiMiCTEKS.  A  liturgical  composition  wliich  received  a  number  of  additions 
(cp.  Bickell  and  Duhm),  originally  perhaps  written  in  tlie  margin.  Cp.  v. 
5  wilh  xciv.  3;  T'.  6  wilh  cxv.  3/^,  Ex.  xx.  4 ;  z^.  7  with  Jer.  x.  13;  v. 
13  with  Ex.  iii.  15;  v.  14  with  Dt.  xxxii.  36;  vv.  15-20  with  cxv. 
4-1 1.  Verses  10  and  12  seem  to  have  been  copied  by  the  writer  of  Ps. 
cxxxvi.,  who  introduced  out  of  his  own  head  a  reference  to  Sihon  and  to 
Og  (the  two  most  noted  hostile  kings),  which  a  later  editor  of  Ps.  cxxxv. 
imported   into   our   psalm.     On   v.    \\b,   .see   crit.   note.      In   /.  2  D"*^J   refers 

probably  to  the  'name'  of  Yahwe.  In  /.  16  '  Ishmael '  (=  Belh-jeralimeel) 
is  the  name  of  the  place  in  the  Negeb  where  there  was  a  temple  of  Vahwe 
in  post-exilic  times  (see  on  Ps.  cxxii.). 

'   In  jerahmeel.  '•'  The  maker  of  heaven  and  earth. 


PSALM     CXXXV.  205 

I  Praise  Yah,  for  Yahwe  is  gracious,  3 

Chant  hymns  to  his  name,  for  it  is  lovely. 
For  Yah  has  chosen  Jacob  for  himself,  4 

Israel  ^  for  his  special  treasure  ;  - 

Who  smote  the  firstborn  of  Miarim,  8 

Both  of  man  and  of  beast  ; 

+Who+  sent  signs  and  portents  •'  9 

Upon  Pir'u  and  all  his  servants  ; 

Who  smote  great  nations,  10 

10  And  slew  mighty  kings,* 

And  gave  their  land  ^  as  an  inheritance,  12 

An  inheritance  to  his  people  Israel. 


O  Yahwe!  thy  name  is  for  ever;  13 

O  Yahwe  !  thy  memorial  is  for  all  ages." 
Ma}'  Yahwe  bless  from  Zion  21 

[Every  one]  that  dwells  in  Ishmael. 

Critical  Notes.  4.  >J-ljn>  ^JhJ  ("'•  5).  like  ^J-|yT"S'?  In  xxxi.  11, 
Ixxxi.  6,  has  probably  sprung  from  7J<Dn")'»,  a  gloss  on  '?^i"^^i'^  (/.  4). 

Gloss  on  /.  9.  Read  D^"12iQ  nDi'/p21  (see  on  cxvi.  19).  Duhm  also 
finds  a  gloss  here,  but  keeps  the  text-reading.  He  calls  the  gloss  '  the 
affected  insertion  of  a  writer  who  knew  cxvi.  19.' 

Gloss  on  /.  10.     Read  >a'^^i^■    See  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Og,'  'Sihon.' 

Gloss  on  /.  12.  Read  TJp  JliD^pg  '?3.  This  penetrated  into  the 
text,  and  received  the  prefix  7l .     Cp.  cv.  1 1  (also  a  gloss). 

15  f.    Omit  closing  n''l7"in  with  G.    There  are  two  difficulties  in  the 

'  Jerahmeel. 

^  (For  I  know  that)  Yahwe  is  great,  |  and  that  our  Lord  is  above  all 
gods.  II  All  that  he  wills,  he  does  |  in  the  heaven  and  on  the  earth,  |  in  the  seas 
and  in  all  abysses  ;  ||  Who  causes  vapours  to  ascend  from  the  end  of  the  earth,  ( 
who  makes  lightnings  for  the  rain,  |  who  brings  the  winds  out  of  his  store-chambers 
{vv.  5-7). 

^  Upon  Maacath-misrim. 

•*  Sihon,  the  king  of  the  Arammites,  |  and  Og  the  king  of  Bashan  [y.  l\a). 

•"'  All  the  kingdoms  of  Kenaz. 

®  For  Yahwe  will  ri^ht  his  people,  |  he  will  relent  over  his  servants  (&.  14). 
Verses  15-20  nearly  as  cxv.  4,  11. 


206  THE    PSALMS. 

text  reading,  (i)  ]V^^3,  which  seems  to  su<^gest  that  Yahwc  is  not  in 
Zion,  and  (2)  □'?;£^n^3.  It  is  not  usual  to  say  that  Yahwc  dwells  in 
Jerusalem.     Read,  with  Bickell  (except  as  to  the  closing  place-name), — 

^i'»:iD   mn^   -rjin^ 


PSALM    CXXXVI. 

1  RiMErERS.  A  companion  to  Ps.  cxxxv. ;  to  l>oik  psalms  G  prefixes 
A\\r)\ovia.  The  refrain  which  appears  in  cxviii.  1-4,  occurs  here  in  every 
verse.  A  fuller  refrain  is  preserved  in  the  closing  verse  (see  note).  This 
psalm  is  generally  called  the  great  Hallel,  though  Talmud  and  Midrash  include 
the  whole  of  Pss.  cxx.-cxxxvi.  under  this  title  (see  £/ic.  Bib.,  '  Ilallel '). 
Observe  that  Ps.  cxxxvi.  has  served  as  the  model  of  the  hymn  in  fifteen 
verses  which  appears  in  the  Heb.  text  of  Sirach  after  li.  12 — a  hymn  which 
is  found  in  no  version,  and  is  presumably  of  very  late  date.  Schechter  {Cam- 
bridge  Ben  Sira,  p.  36,  Introd.)  draws  exaggerated  critical  inferences. 

Of  the  JeraJimeelites.  cxxxv.,  end. 

I  Give  thanks  to  Yahwe,  for  he  is  good,  I 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 
Give  thanks  to  the  God  of  gods,  2 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 
Give  thanks  to  the  Lord  of  lords,  3 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

To  him  who  alone  doeth  great  wonders,  4 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 
To  him  who  by  understanding  made  the  heavens,  5 

10  For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

To  him  who  spread  out  the  earth  above  the  water,         6 
For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

To  him  who  made  great  lights,  7 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 

The  sun  to  rule  b}'  day,  8 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 

The  moon  and  the  stars  to  rule  by  night,  9 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

To  him  who  smote  the  Alisrites  in  their  firstborn,         10 
20  For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 

And  brought  out  Israel  from  the  midst  of  them,  1 1 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 
With  a  mighty  hand  and  a  stretched  out  arm,  12 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 


PSALM    CXXXVI.  207 

To  him  who  cut  the  sea  of  Suph  into  parts,  13 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 
And  made  Israel  to  pass  through  the  midst  of  it,  14 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 
But  shook  off  Pharaoh  and  his  host,'  15 

30  For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

To  him  who  led  his  people  through  the  wilderness,  16 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 

To  him  who  smote  great  kings,  17 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 

And  slew  noble  kings,-'  1 8 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 


Who  thought  upon  us  in  our  abasement,  23 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting  ; 
And  rescued  us  from  our  foes,  24 

40  For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

Who  has  given  Jerahmeel  for  a  prey,  2; 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

Full  Refrain. 

Give  thanks  to  the  God  of  heaven,  26 

For  his  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 

3,    5.      Ood    of  grods,   Iiord    of  shoilcr  refrain  added  to  each  stichus). 
lords.     See  Dt.  x.  17. — 9.   By  under-  ^^   ^      ^-»»m  i    •     ,-    , 

standmg.     Cp.  Prov.  iii.  19.-11.    The  -37,39-  73t^,  again  only  m  Lccles. 

7valer.      Cp.     'the    water    under    the  x.  6  ;  piS  '  to  rescue,' only  in  Lam.  v. 

earth,'    Ex.    xx.  4. — 13.    D^lih?   here  8  (but  cp.  on  Ps.  vii.  3  and  cxxxviii. 

only  for  J^^^^<^p.-I9.    riu' Mi^Htes.  3);   cp.    Aram.    plD    'to   redeem.'— 

c  I       •••  !,       ^-    -^>-^»^  •  43    f-      The     fuller     refrain.      Bickell 

See  on  Ixxvni.  ii. — 25.  u    lij,  a<'ain  ,        , 

,      .       ^  ,  r'"'-       '  remarks   that    the    Syrian   and    Greek 

only   in    Gen.  xv.    17    (of    sacnficial  /-u  •  »■  1  .  .u  r 

^  ^  Christians  always  put  the  responses  of 

victims).— 29.  nyp,   as    Kx.   xiv.    27.       the  laity  at  the    end  of  strophes,  and 
—  35.   Insertion  from  cxxxv.  11  f.  (with       not  of  stichi. 

Critical  Notes.     19.    Point    D''~lJiQ.  — 29.    Omit    si'D'D'':;!    (gloss).— 
35.    Omit   V7'.   19—22    (see   above)  ;    try  singing  tliese   words  with  tlie 


'   Into  the  sea  of  .Suph. 

-  Sihon,  king  of  the  .Vrammites,  and  Og  the  king  of  Bashan;  and  gave  their 
land  as  an  inheritance,  an  inheritance  to  his  people  Israel  (zv.  19-22,  with  the 
shorter  refrain  added). 


208  THE    PSALMS. 

refrain  ! — 41.  A  friend  remarks,  '  It  always  seems  to  me  that  the  psahn 
would  be  much  more  beautiful  (from  a  literary  point  of  view)  without 
•7'.  25.  The  poet  seems  to  begin  a  new  stanza  or  section  of  which  the 
continuation  is  lost.'  In  truth,  no  more  feeble  close  of  a  psalm  of 
thanksgiving  could  be  imagined.  Now,  however,  that  it  has  been  shown 
that  DH"?  often,  and  "^3  sometimes,  represent  a  mutilated  '?^<Q^T, 
there  is  nothing  but  a  prejudice  against  the  ethnic  '  Jerahmeel  '  to 
prevent  us  from  restoring  the  text  thus,  ]2^   7K?3m"'  ]jlj. 


PSALM  CXXXVII. 

1  ENTAMETERs.  Two  Sentiments  glow  with  equal  intensity  in  the  psalmist's 
mind— love  for  Israel  and  vindictive  hatred  for  its  foes,  and  Y'ahwe's  foes. 
His  hatred  for  the  latter  is,  however,  not  expressed  in  such  revolting  terms 
as  the  scribes  have  led  us  to  suppose ;  perfect  propriety  of  feeling  from  a 
Jewish  point  of  view  is  preserved.  Nor  is  there  any  inconsistency  in  the 
"subject  of  vv.  1-6  and  7,  8  ;  here  too  tlie  faults  of  copyists  have  led  the 
critics  astray.  In  both  parts  of  the  poem  the  Edomites  are  referred  to,  i.e. 
those  who  occupied  the  Jerahmeelite  Negeb  and  the  south  of  Judah  after 
ilie  Chaldean  invasion.  The  poem  (see  /.  12)  might  conceivably  have  been 
written  when  Judas  '  went  forth  and  fought  against  the  sons  of  Esau  in  the 
land  toward  the  south  and  smote  Hebron  and  the  villages  thereof  (i  Mace, 
v.  65).  More  probably,  however,  it  is  to  be  grouped  with  Lam.  v.,  where 
the  tyranny  of  the  Misrites  and  the  Arabians  after  the  invasion  is  described 
by  an  imaginary  eye-witness,  and  witli  the  '  vision  of  Obadiah,'  to  which  it 
appears  to  present  some  striking  parallels.  The  band  of  post-exilic  temple- 
singers  identifies  itself  imaginatively  with  those  who  had,  as  is  here  stated, 
been  carried  captive  by  Edomites  to  the  JerahmeeUte  Negeb,  where  Yahwe 
was  not  worshipped,  and  consequently  'songs  of  Yahwe'  ought  not  to  be 
sung.  These  singers  did  not,  as  MT  says,  hang  their  harps  on  the  willows  ; 
a  worse  fate  befell  them — they  saw  their  loved  instruments  battered  to  pieces 
because  they  had  refused  to  raise  the  sacred  song  of  praise  for  the  amusement 
of  their  triumphant  captors.'  Then  the  post-exilic  singers  (personified  as  an 
individual)  express  their  own  fervent  attachment  to  Jerusalem ;  never  will 
they  forget  to  sing  the  praises  of  Jerusalem,  as  in  I'ss.  xlviii.,  cxxii.  (' because 
of  the  house  of  Yahwe  our  God,'  cxxii.  9).  This  view  is  confirmed  by 
the  probably  correct  theory  of  Isa.  xxi.  i-io  put  forward  in  Crif.  Bib.,  pp.  25  ff. ; 

the  corruption  "73^  for  7l^D~13(?)  =^  t'NT.Dnn'  is  common  to  both  composi- 
tions. Attempts  to  make  this  psalm  exilic  (Hal.,  REy,  i.  22  f.  ;  Bu.,  New 
World,  March  '93;  Du. );  or  contemporary  with  John  Hyrcanus  (Olsh.,  Beer) 
presuppose  that  'Babel'  in  vv.  i,  8  is  correct.  Winckler's  new  and  ingenious 
theory    that    a    Jewish    captivity    in    Antioch   under   Antiochus   Epiphanes   is 

referred  to  (AOF,  iii.  401  ff.),  is  based  upon  the  theory  that  D^^~1J7  (v.  2) 
means  the  myrtles  of  Daphne  near  Antioch  (see  '  Willow,'  Euc.  Bib.),  and 
that    D*ni^     hi   V.  7   should    be   Dlhi     (/I12    in    i^v.   I,    8    is    consequently 

emended),  Winckler's  reconstruction  of  the  text  is  unhappy  ;  his  historical 
argument,  therefore,  however  instructive,  misses  the  mark. 

G  (^^  and  B)  prefixes  t^  AauetS ;  the  Hexapla  text  adds  lepe^iou.  F.  W. 
Mozley  boldly  accepts  Jeremiah's  authorship  {^David  in  the  Psalms,  '90,  pp. 
5  f.).  Not  improbably,  however,  the  IIT'D^^  presupposed  by  the  latter  text 
is  a  corruption  of  [D^]7NDm^[7],  'of  the  Jerahmeelites.*  This  would  be  a 
natural  variant   to  */^^^?    Zl"li'7  >    or    whatever   other   N.    Arabian   ethnic   may 


PSALM   CXXXVII.  209 

be  thought  to  underlie  the  corrupt  title  T)"!*?  (see  General  Introd.,  and 
cp.  on  Ps.  cxlvi.).  That  the  latter  part  of  the  psalm  {vv.  7-9)  refers  altogether 
to  the  Edomites  was  seen  by  W.  E.  Barnes  {Expositor,  March,  1899).  But 
'  Edom  '  could  not  possibly  be  called  '  daughter  of  Babylon,'  as  Barnes  suppo-^es 
(p.  206).  Moral  kinship  with  Babylon  and  political  iiependence  on  Babylon 
arc  insufficient  explanations  of  such  a  strange  title.  In  v.  8  and  elsewhere 
there  is  deep  textual  corruption.  Nor  can  we  separate  the  two  parts  ot  the 
psalm.     If  part  ii.  refers  to  the  Edomites,  so  too  does  part  i. 

I     On  the  heritage  of  Jerahmeel  we  wept,  |  remembering 

Zion  ;  I 

The  Arabs  in  the  midst  thereof  had  beaten  |  our  harps 

to  pieces.  2 

For   our   captors   had    even    asked   of  us  |  harp-playing 

and  song ;  3 

'  Raise  before  us  a  Hallel,  |  ye  harpers  of  Zion.' 

How  could  we  sing  songs  of  Yahwe  |  on  foreign  ground  ?       4 
If  I  forget  thee,  O    Jerusalem,  |  me  +too+  may  melody 

forget !  5 

May  my  tongue   cleave  to    my  palate,  |  if  I  remember 

thee  not,  6 

If  I  raise  not  the  Hallel  to  Jerusalem  [  with  harp-playing 
and  song. 

Remember,  O  Yahwe  !  against  Edom's  sons  |  the  wicked- 
ness of  the  plutiderers,  7 
10  Who    said,    '  Let    us    cast    lots  |  upon    the    sanctuaries 
thereof.' 

To  thee  also,   O   house   of  Jerahmeel,  |  the   plunderers 

shall  come ;  8 

Jacob  shall  uproot  thee,  and  shall  overthrow  |  all  thy 
palaces.' 

I.  The  berltage  of  Jerahmeel.  and  the  pious  singers  of  Israel  hanging 

The    occupation    of    S.   Judah,    which  their  harps  on  the  trees,  and  refused  to 

adjoined    the   Jcralmieelitc    Negeb,   by  discuss  the  improbability  of  a  triumphal 

the   Edomites  excited  the  bitterest  re-  feast  held  by  the  riverside  (in  a  garden), 

sentment  among  the  Jews  (see  introd.).  and   the    rebellious  singers    proceeding 

The    wrongdoing    of    Edom,     not    of  solemnly    to     hang    up     their     harps. 

Babylon,     filled     the     mind     of     the  (Wellhausen     banleringly     asks    why 

psrflmist.      One    may    regret     parting  they  did  not  leave  their  instrumeiUs  at 

with  the  received  text ;   super  Jlumina  home.)     See  crit.  n. 

Bahylouis     has    become    almost     pro-  „,                            ....           ,     . 

verbial.     One  was  pleased  to  imagine  ,  ,  ^^    ^^]l^  ^'^'J    re  al.at.on    of    the 

the  grand  river-like  canals  {mhdli)  of  -^''•^''s    (D'2~J,  as  Lam.  v.  8,  cp.  0; 

Babylonia,  with  the  luiphratcan  poplars,  see '  Lamentations,  Book  of,'  Enc.  Bib. ). 

»  O  Ishmael. 
n.  P 


2IO  THE    PSALMS. 

3  f.  A  banquet  is  in  progress,  and  Jerusalem '  in  compulsory  exile  leads 
fresh  amusements  are  required  (cp.  to  weeping  ;  in  the  sacred  land,  to 
Am.    vi.    5),    or,    if    the    feast   has    a       psalms  like  xlviii.,  cxxii. 

religious     character,     the     H^njl     is  9.      See     Ezek.    xxv.    12,     xxxv., 

demanded    as    a    recognition    of    the  Am.  i.  11  f.,  Mai.  i.  2-5,  and  especially 

.sui.jeition  of  the  Jewish  god.     Sonj^s  of  Ob.  10-16,  and  cp.  '  Edom,'  Enc.  Bib. 

Yahwe  are    psalms    (2  Chr.  xxix'.  27,  j^  ^     cast  lots,  as  Ob.   11. -To 

I     Chr.    xxv      7).       There    being    no  ^j^^^  ^^j^^^    ^^  ^^^^^     j^,_    21. -House  of 

sacrifices..naforeignsod(Hos.  ni.  4),  jerahmcel.       Cp.     'house    of    Esau,' 

there  could  be  no  psalms.  (^,,  18.— ^aW;  in  antitheses  to  Edom; 

7.     Here  ]iost-exilic  sentiments  are  cp.    Ub.   10,    17  f. —  Uproot   and   ove7-- 

expressed  (see int rod.).    To 'remember  //^row,  parallel,  as  lii.  7. 

Critical  Notes,  i.  M  "^^^  miH^  '?;^-  Why  the  plural  ?  Accord- 
ing to  Haupt  {IsainJi,  SBOT.^  p.  109)  '  amplificative.'  But  722,  too  is 
open  to  question.  It  appears  from  v.  9  that  Edom,  not  Babylon,  was 
the  enemy  referred  to  [Wi.  also  suspects  "^^Zi].  Read  '?^^i!p^^^  ''^!?D^~'^^- 
So  '^22  for  t'}^*on"l%  in  Gen.  x.  10  ;  see  '  Nimrod,'  Ejic.  Bib.)  The  con- 
nuation  is  equally  doubtful.  Why  did  the  Jews  sit  down  and  weep  ? 
Because  the  plashing  of  the  waves  soothed  their  grief  (Del.)?  Or 
because  they  had  prayer-houses  there  ?  But  a  close  inspection  bids  us 
omit  1^21^^^  Dli^  nt^  =  '\yD,  a  fragment  of  a  dittographed  '^T^'^  (not 
IJQli'^ ;  see  ?'.  ^a).     Omit  also  □;),  a  dittogram  of  the  QJ  (so  read)  in 

2.  M  '^2  ^T^n  HEi'ina  D^nir"':';^   if  "W'bv  is  right,  7^2^r^2 

.    T         IT        :  •  T-:       - 

must  be  wrong.  The  willows  (Euphratean  poplars  ?)  were  beside  the 
streams,  not  in  the  midst  of  an  undefined  something.  If  '  in  the  land ' 
were  mennt,  we  should  require  at  least  n3-  The  mention  of  bne  Edom 
in  V.  7  suggests  reading  D''21;j^»,  '  Arabs  '  (see  above).  7J/  comes  from 
a  dittographed  1^?.  For  '^H  read  ^r\r\2  {1  =  2,  'h  =  T\}.  Wi.  gives 
hingen  (?)  wir,'  but  remarks,  'the  context  seems  to  require  "they  dashed 
pieces,"'  and  points  out  that  1Jv/1  arose  under  the  influence  of 
lJV7in,  which  word,  however,  he  does  not  account  for. 

3.  M   W<li-     Read  DD    (cp.  on  D!l  in  ?'.  i) ;   J  and  !£,'  confounded. — 

T 

M  ")"'li^  "'"121  ;  G  Xdyoiif  wSwi/;  i.e.  'songs.'  A  doubtful  idiom  in  Pss. ; 
see  on  xxxv.  20.  Read  D^''^^^  ilipt  (Ixxxi.  3,  xcviii.  5) ;  this  is  proved 
by  the  corrupt  dittogram  TVID  iini^DIi'  in  M. 

4.  M  ^lb  n^2>  TT\12V  ^r':?bij"n-      Too  long  for  a  line  (verse).      Bi., 

T  T  :    •  "T       : 

therefore,  rightly  omits  ^i^  ^")^It',  but  does  not  explain  how  it  came  in. 
No  scholar,  strange  to  say,  has  questioned  nn^^i',  though  this  is  not  an 
adequate   parallel   to    ~T^  ^HQIj   and   though   G    gives   vixvov.      Most 


PSALM    CXXXVII.  211 

(Hu.  alt.,  Per.,  Gv.,  Bi.,  Ba.,  Kaii.,  Herz)  correrl    '^ij"!    into  ^r'^'piTi' ;   cf. 

T  M2TO  ;    Ci  o'l  unayayovres  r;/x"j  (?).      But   this   produces  a  tautological 

statement  which  cannot  be  right.     Read  probably    H^njl  ^y2ilh  ^'^'^tl- 

T  .    :  ..t:  :  - 

(On  ITli'  nUDID,  see  preceding  note  ;  1^*^  is  clearly  a  repetition  of 
the  preceding  letters.)  Tiic  three  words  'rm  's7  vll  coalesced  in  M 
into  one  (1J"''?'!'1/1)  owing  to  the  frequency  of  7.  In  crs  te.xl  lt''7n  had 
dropped  out,  and  G  perhaps  misread  IJ^JS'^  as  ^ID^'^JD  (an  easy  mistake), 
but  kept  TwilJl  ',  hence  it  gives  Kal  nl  anayayiwrf s  ))fjias  vfivov.  (Hal., 
Che.,'"  lj"''^^im ,  '  and  (of)  our  dancers';  Kenn.  r\r\2^  =  vfivnu?).  —  M 
"T'l^ip.     Gr.,  better,  "'Ttt'D  (cp.  G  S).     Best  of  all,  ''IDTrj . 

6.  The  text  reads  CjVj;)  HDIDD,  i.e.  either  FTD^'r^  (G  J  perhaps)  or 
n3^r\  (M)?  S  Saad.  imply  '•^nDtlTl.  Ibn  Ezra  and  Kimhi,  'let 
my  right  hand  forget  (its  art),'  i.  c.  '  Tart  de  harper,'  as  Marot  (in  the 
Huguenot  Psalter)  puts  it.  Krochmal,  Herzfeld,  Gr.  read  either  '^n2P\ 
or  li^n^ri .  The  latter  would  do  (Che  •  ),  but  should  be  followed  by  ^3. 
Weir  nJD  V'y.  Uy-  proposes  "^yT)  ;  cf.  xxii.  16,  where,  as  here,  1i)y' 
rind  p21  are  combined.  Ibn  Ezra  mentions  this  view,  and  Schultens 
(Aniinadjierszoncs,  202)  inclines  to  it.  Nevertheless  it  must  be  wrong. 
The  physical  theme  is  exhausted  in  /.  7,  and  we  need  something  which 
connects  with  /.  5rr.  Read,  certainly,  nD"'3<'J  ^JHB'ii^i^  (see  on  cl.  4). 
^J  fell  out  owing  to  the  vicinity  of  ^J  .     ^II^'^pj  is  also  possible. 

8.  M  ^Du^TD  -^sn  bv  '")'"nK  rhvi^  vh'Wik.  what  can']£!v^'\  bv 

mean?  Bii.,  'above  the  highest  joy  which  I  could  have.'  And  n'^yj^  ? 
01.,  '  I  esteem,'  but  with  the  remark,  '  Tij'^r\  does  not  occur  again  in  this 
sense.'  Bii.  compares  Jer.  li.  50  for  the  form  of  the  idiom,  but  there  is 
no  real  parallelism.  Wi.  renders,  '  If  I  did  (do)  not  return  to  Jerusalem 
with  the  highest  joy,'  which  is  the  resource  of  despair.  Read,  probably, 
T'^r  ny^rb^  "^'"'^'^  '^^Q^  ^TWiil  ;  bl\  '  accompanied  by.'  nniyU 
misread,  as  in  ?'.  3. 

9.  M  D'^It'T)"'  DV  Dh},  'Jerusalem's  day  +of  misfortune+.'  But 
'days'  come  from  the  supernatural  world.  All  that  God  can  punish  is 
the  conduct  of  certain  persons  on  a  fore-ordained  day  (cp.  Ob.  11-14). 
Read,  probably,  U^yytL^'n  Dyii^"l  (cp.  Ezek.  xxxix.  10,  Zech.  ii.  12).  "\~\> 
is  a  condensation  of  the  hvo  words :   Q[1]^  /IhJ  is  a  corrupt  dittogram. 

10.  M  na  "TiDN7  ly  n;^  n;;.  something  like  Hab.  iii.  isfi,  whicli 
is  clearly  corrupt  (We.,  Now.),  and  not  what  we  expect  here  ;    it  is  not 


212  THE     PSALMS. 

enough  to  read   nniD'-      'I'lie  latter  part  is  certainly  n'lnpD'Ln^^]- 
°  T    V      :  T    V  T  :  - 

n>»  '\')y  should,  perhaps,  be  TIB'^  ^')2V. 

II  f.    M's  text   is  quite  impossible;  but  \\i.'s  restoration  of  7'^'.  7  f. 

is  admitted  by  himself  to  be  prosaic,  and  only  worthy  of  an  interpolator. 

nmji'n  (G  TttXatVco/jos- ;    cp.  G^"^^,   Jer.  iv.  30)  is   perple.xing.     Kenn., 

T    :  :  - 
Gr.,  We.,  Du.  weakly  correct    nilil^^H  (cp.  S  2  T).     Bi.  and   Du.  omit 

'^i^  7'?1!2J"nX  as  a  gloss  (these  glosses  are  mostly  treacherous  things'.). 

Barnes  has  the  credit  of  being  the  first   to  see   that   Edom  was  still 

referred  to,  though  he  could  not  correct  the  text  ;   he  explains  7^2  DD  , 

'  Thou  moral  kinswoman  of  Babylon,'  which  is  impossible.     Utilizing  all 

the  relics  of  the  true  text,  we  should  probably  read  thus, — 

I  VT    ••         V         '  -T :  '  -:~       '   :      •  :- 

It  will  be  seen  that  there  has  been  some  displacement  as  well  as  corrup- 
tion ;  the  editor,  in  his  wish  to  make  some  sense,  may  be  responsible  for 
the  displacement.  -p'\::):\  Dii^lb  Q."l  ')J"^^^^  D'?'^'^::'  n;:^N  appears 
to  consist  of  two  imperfect  forms  of  Q^77li^n ;  "J?  is  a  dittogram.  7ii 
■  P/DH  is  probably  a  corruption  of  '?^iyQti/^  a  correct  gloss  on  ^2,1  n[^]2- 


PSALM    CXXXVIII. 

X  RIMEIEKS.  The  thanksgivings  of  the  triumphant,  and  the  prophecy  of  the 
militant  community.  To  llie  first  part  belong  stanzas  1-3  ;  to  the  second, 
4-7.  Sniend  rightly  sees  that  the  speaker  is  pious  Israel,  and  that  the  Messianic 
future  is  anticipated  (p.  139).  Theodore  of  Mopsuestia,  in  the  Syriac  epitome, 
refers  the  psalm  to  'the  (people)  returned  from  Babylon,  which  thanks  God 
for  its  deliverance'  {ZATIV,    1S85,  p.  9S). 

Of  'Arab-ethaii.  I 

I  With  my  whole  heart,  O  Yahwe  !  I  thank  lliee  ; 

Before  Jerahnieel  I  chant  songs  to  thee  : 


I  bow  down  toward  thy  holy  temple, 

And  give  thanks  to  thy  name,  [O  Yahwe  !] 

For  thy  lovingkindness  and  for  th^-  truth's  sake. 

For  thou  hast  made  all  thy  doings  great  ; 

In  Jerahmeel  I  called  on  thee,  and  thou  answeredst  me, 

Thou  didst  rescue  me  from  those  of  Ishmael. 


PSALM    CXXXVIII.  213 

10         All  those  of  Jerahincel  shall  give  thee  thanks,  4 

When  they  have  heaid  the  words  of  th}-  mouth, 
And  shall  sing  ui'  the  ways  of  Yahwe.  5 

For  great  is  the  glory  of  Yahwe, — 

For  the  haught}'  and  the  lowly  he  sees,  6 

And  that  which  is  high  he  fells  from  afar  off. 

If  I  walk  in  the  midst  of  trouble,  7 

Against    mine    enemies    thou    wilt    stretch   forth  thy 

hand. 
Thou  wilt  deliver  me  and  bring  me  to  rest. 

Yahwe  will  have  compassion  upon  his  servants  ;  8 

20         O  Yahwe  !  thy  lovingkindness  is  everlasting. 
Do  not  thou  abandon  the  work  of  thy  hands. 

2.       Before      Jerabmeel.        So  Fa^rt'f",  ?'.«.  his  manner  of  dealing  ;  cp. 

cxix.  46.     It  is  implied  that,  impressed  Dt.  xxxii.  4  (||  his  work),   Ps.  ciii.  7 

by  the  dealings  of  \'aliwe,  the  surviving  ( |1  his  doings). — 14  f.   Vahwe's  inspec- 

Jerahmeelites    will     turn     to    Vahwc,  tion  is  equally  keen,  whether  an  object 

whom   they  will   thank   (/.   10)  for  his  be  high   or  low.     The  '  high  one  '  is  a 

compassion  to  Israel  and  to  themselves.  collective     term    for    the    enemies    of 

In    fact,     Jerahnieel    will     become    a  Israel;    cp.    Isa.   x.  33,    'the    high    of 

member  of  the  great  Israelite  body  (cp.  stature  shall  be  felled.' — Frow  afar  off, 

on    Ixxxvii.,   Isa.  xix.   25).     See   crit.  i.e.  from  the  far-off  heii^ht  of  heaven, 

note. — 4.     Cp.    V.    7.-8.     In   Jerah-  Cp.  T,  'from    the   distant   heaven   he 

meel.     Cp.  Ixxvii.  2,  &c.     The  idea  is  throwsdown  the  lofty.'     The '  stretched 

that   the   main    body   of  the    captives  out  arm'  (cxxxvi.  12)   is  super-terres- 

from   Judah  were   in  N.  Arabia.— 11.  trial;  cp.  xviii.  17.     See  crit.  note. 

r/ie  words  of  t/iy  nioiit/i,  i.e.  ihii  l.a.\v.  16-iS.      Cp.    xxiii.    4,    5^.      The 

Cp.  cxix.  13,  72,  SS.— 12.    The  7mys  oj  .  ,.est '  of  the  Messianic  age  is  meant. 

Critical  Notes.  i.  Insert  TV\TV,  with  Bi,  Che.<",  Du.,  after  G  S  J  T. 
S,  however,  reads  nilX-— 2.  M  D^ri/N  l^J ,  'before  (=in  defiance  of) 
the  gods'  (A  2  E'J,  Hengst.,  Hu.,  Hi.,  Stade,  Du.)  ?  'Before  God'=: 
'  in  the  sanctuary  ' ;  cp.  Ex.  xxi.  6,  xxii.  8  (Evv.,  Ol.,  We.)  ?  *  Before  the 
angels'  (G,  Calv.)  ?  Observe,  against  i,  that  such  a  phrase  seems  a  too 
distinct  affirmation  of  the  real  existence  of  the  gods  of  the  nations  ; 
against  2,  that  a  combination  of  two  senses  of  'elvhlm  in  one  Hne  is 
improbable,  and  that  we  should  at  any  rate  expect  ^JH)'?  (Josh.  xxiv.  i) ; 
against  3,  that  there  is  no  sure  example  of  D^1'?^^,  'angels'  (see  on 
Ixxxii.  i).  It  is  true,  however,  that  IJJ  ought  to  mean  'in  defiance 
of,'  and  that  D^"^7^i  ought  to  refer  to  some  conquered  enemies  of  the 
Jews.  Who,  then,  were  the  chief  enemies  of  the  later  Jews  ?  The 
Jerahmeelites.  And,  as  a  fact,  we  actually  find  that  D^'^'^^J  not  un- 
frequently  covers  over  '7^i^^m^  The  passage  is  thus  brought  into 
accordance  with  /.  10  (see  below). 


214  '1"HE    PSALMS. 

3.  Ce  inserts  on  t'JKovaas  tu  pq^ara  tov  o-ro/xaros  /uov.  Bi.,  Du.  accept 
this.  But  the  sense  is  poor,  and  we  do  not  expect  the  cause  of  the 
thanksgiving  to  be  mentioned  just  yet.  A  line  (verse)  may  have  fallen 
out. — 5.    Insert  m^^ 

7.  At  tiie  end  of  v.  2.  .M  gives  "TDlQhi.  'I'his  is  merely  adittogram 
of  ']r):2ii  in  /.  6.  The  preceding  words  are  T|rj'yi'~'73"'?y  ph^:i7^-''^  ; 
most  unnaHwal.     Clericus  and  Dvserinck  read  'T\^!2'I} ,  and    Hcrz    pro- 

'     V   T 

poses  nri/'^iy  (cp.  Isa.  ix.  2).     But,  as  often,  fP  is  a  corruption  of  "^J  ; 
the  second  ^D  is  a  dittograph  ;   "fr.Dti'  should  be  ^'''ii^'J'rp   (cp.  /.  21).— 

8.    For  UV2.  read  TO^Il  (Ixwii,  3),  '  in  Yaman'  =  '  in  Jcrahmeel.' 
tt: 

9.  M  Ty  '')D323.  "'jnnnjR-  corrupt.  Uni-  'to  rage'  is  a  most 
unlikely  root  to  find  here.  ''JlMin,  in  Cant.  vi.  5,  is  also  corrupt. 
Nor  can  one  easily  accept  Tj;  '22-  'in  my  soul  is  strength.'  Both  "'"ti'BJ 
and  Tr  are  possible  corruptions  of  [D^]'?Nr^3tl'\  ^  word  which  cer- 
tainly suits  in  such  a  context.     '~)j~)  may  come  from  ""JplS/l,  miswritten 

as  ^:mnj~i . 

10.  M  yiN"''^'^*^"'!?^.  Hupf.  remarks,  'This  vague  expression  is, 
of  course,  not  to  be  taken  historically  of  neighbouring  kings  (as  the 
Rabbis),  but  ideally.'  But  the  evidence  elsewhere  is  adverse  to  this 
\'iew.  Except  when  something  in  the  context  dissuades  from  such  a 
course,  it  is  best  to  assume  that  where  D07J2  are  referred  to,  either  the 
neighbouring  kings  are  meant,  or  '!2  is  a  corruption  of  D^'7N!!3n")V  The 
latter  view  seems  the  best.  It  is  the  conversion  of  peoples,  not  of  kings, 
that  we  expect.  Y"1J<  will,  in  this  case,  be  an  editorial  insertion. — Omit 
r]')r\'^  (metre)— perhaps  from  Tl'^^^'^J^'^n")''  (as  elsewhere). 

14  f.  Omit  mrT"'  (sense  and  metre),  and  read  ^HJl',  wilii  Duhm. 
See  e.xeg.  note.     Konig  (i.  420  ff.)  may  be  compared. 

16-18.  The  first  two  slichi  o{  v.  7  are  too  long.  ''THD  (if  correctly 
read)  should  evidently  be  at  the  end  of  the  slan/a.  First,  Yahwc 
stretches  out  his  hand,  then  he  saves  and  restores  to  full  life.  It  is 
true,  "]i^D^  does  not  fit  in  well  with  ^mn.  But  is  '/^^  correct  ?  We 
,  expect  a  verb,  and  a  verb  it  is  still  easy  to  detect  underneath  I^VJ^  ; 
it  is  ^T.3njD,  which  is  no  doubt  a  variant  to  ^^^nD  •  Frobably,  how- 
ever, the  true  reading  is  ^jnjn,  with  which  the  two  other  forms  are 
easily  confounded  (cp.  on  xxiii.  5).  In  /.  17  omit  C)}^,  which  has  sprung 
out  of  a  dittograi)hed  n^i<}- 

19.    M  ''1^2  ib.V-      I'l-it  TJJl  atul  iy3  ilo  not  go  together.     Read 

I'l^J*  Dm"  ;  note  parallelism. 
T  T  -:       ••  - : 


PSALM    CXXXIX.  215 


PSALM    CXXXIX. 

1  RIMETERS.  No  psalm  perhaps  more  clearly  shows  the  liberty  taken  by  the 
editors  of  the  psalms,  and  the  skill  with  which  they  ingrafted  new  ideas  upon  the 
old  stock.  In  the  present  instance  the  editor  was  also  a  poet,  and  ihDUgh 
traces  of  the  corruptness  of  the  text  upon  which  he  w 'rked  are  abundant,  the 
psalm  in  i's  present  form  (especially  stanzas  1-6)  has  deservedly  attracted 
the  admiration  of  all  thoughtful  readers.  Ibn  Ezra  calls  it  'very  glorious,' 
and  says  that  'in  these  five  books  there  is  nothing  like  it.'  Erskinc  of  Linlalhen 
would  wish  to  have  it  before  him  on  his  deathbed.  The  drawback  to  it  in  the 
minds  of  scholars  is  the  debased  character  of  the  Hebrew  in  certain  passages. 
This,  however,  is  solely  due  to  textual  corruption,  and  this  corruption  can  to 
some  extent  be  healed.  The  following  may  represent  something  like  the 
original  form  of  portions  of  the  psalm. 

I     O  Yahwc  !  thou  hast  rooted  up  Zarephath,  i,  2 

It  is  thou  that  hast  cut  down  Maacath  ; 

Ashhur  and  Arabia  thou  hast  scattered,  3 

All  Jerahmeel  thou  hast  subdued. 

I  thank  thee  because  of  thy  wonders,  1 4 

Terrible  exceedingly  are  thy  works, 

Which  thou  hast  performed  in  Zarephath,  15 

Which  thou  hast  accomplished  in  the  land  of  Maacath. 

O  God  !  how  precious  are  thy  works  !  17 

10     How  deep  are  thy  purposes  ! 

Were  I  to  count  them,  they  would  be  more  than  the 

+grains  of+  sand,  18 

Thy  righteous  acts  and  thy  kindnesses  towards  tiie. 

Shall  I  not  hate  those  that  hate  thee,  21 

And  oppose  those  that  oppose  thee  ? 

With  uttermost  hatred  do  I  hate  them,  22 

To  me  +too+  they  are  as  enemies. 

Search  me  out,  O  God  !  and  know  my  heart,  23 

Prove  me,  and  know  my  deeds  ; 

See  if  there  be  in  me  the  way  of  Ishmael,  24 

20     And  hold  me  guiltless  of  the  way  of  Jerahmeel. 

Now  as  to  the  later  phase.  Taking  a  hint  from  //.  17,  18,  the  editor 
appears  to  have  produced  the  following.  Where  he  did  not  write  out  of 
his  own  head  he  had  to  contend  with  great  difficuliics,  having  to  work  upon 
a  partly  corrupt  te.\t,or  indeed  in  some  passages  on  a  text  that  was  no  text 


2l6  THE    PSALMS. 

at  all.  A  still  later  editor  effaced  the  references  to  N.  Arabia  and  its 
people,  but  it  is  not  a  matter  of  indifference  to  find  out  how  the  editor 
and  poet  to  whom  we  are  mainly  indebted  for  our  139th  psalm,  intended 
it  to  be  read. 

Deposited.     Marked :   of  ^Arab-ethan.  i 

1     O  Yahwe  !  thou  hast  searched  me  out, 
And  known  me  '■'  ; 

Thou  knowest  my  downsitting  and  mine  uprising,  2 

Thou  discernest  my  thoughts  (?)  afar  off. 

Thou  siftest  my  journey  and  my  lying  down  (?),  3 

With  all  my  ways  thou  art  familiar. 

For  before  a  word  is  on  my  tongue  (?),  4 

Verily,  O  Yahwe  !  thou  knowest  it  all. 

Thou  hast  enclosed  me  behind  and  before  (?),  5 

10     And  laid  thy  hand  upon  me  ; 

Such  knowledge  is  too  wonderful  for  me,  6 

Too  lofty,  I  cannot  grasp  it. 

Whither  shall  I  go  from  thy  spirit,  7 

Or  whither  flee  from  thy  face  ? 

If  I  fled  to  Cusham,  thou  wouldest  be  there  ;  8 

If  I  went  forth  to  Ishmael,  +there+  I  should  find  thee  ; 

If  I  dwelt  in  the  east  of  Asshur,  9 

And  settled  in  the  recesses  of  Yaman, 

Even  there  thy  hand  would  seize  me,  10 

20     Thy  right  hand  would  hold  me. 

And  if  I  said  '  only  let  Shihor  overflow  me,  II 

Let  the  streams  of  Jerahmeel  swallow  me  up,' 
Even  Shihor  could  not  keep  +aught+  back  from  thee,  12 

Jerahmeel  would  cause  its  streams  to  rise  up. 

For  my  reins  thou  didst  create,  13 

Thou  didst  weave  me  together  in  m^'  mother's  womb. 

I  thank  thee  because  of  thy  wonders.  14 

Very  glorious  are  th}^  works. 

M}'  bones  were  not  hidden  from  thee,  15 

30     When  I  was  made  in  secret, 

When   I  was  brought   forth   in   the  nelher  parts  of  the 
earth. 


PSALM    CXXXIX.  217 

Mine  unformed  substance  Lhinc  c^-es  did  see,  16 

And  in  thy  book  were  they  all  written  ; 

Days  were  formed, 

And  not  one  among  them. 

0  God  !  how  precious  are  thy  thoughts  (?)  !  17 
How  vast  are  the  sums  (?)  of  them  ! 

Were  I  to  count  them,  they  would  be  more  than  +the 

grains  of+  sand  ;  18 

1  awake,  and  am  still  with  thee. 

40     O  that  thou  wouldest  slay  the  wicked,  O  God,  19 

And  that  men  of  blood  would  depart  from  me  I 
Who  defy  thee  for  crimes,  20 

Who  lift  up  (?)  for  vanity — thine  adversaries. 

Shall  I  not  hate  those  that  hate  thee,  21 

And  oppose  those  that  oppose  thee  ? 

With  uttermost  hatred  do  I  hate  them,  22 

To  me  +too+  they  are  as  enemies. 

Search  me  out,  O  God  !  and  know  m}-  heart,  23 

Prove  me,  and  know  my  thoughts  (?)  ; 
50     See  if  there  be  in  me  any  way  of  pain(?), 
And  lead  me  in  the  way  everlasting. 

Critical  Notes.     Let  us  first  of  ail  consider  the  corrupt  and  artificial 
second  form. 

I  f.     Certainly  G  helps  by  representing  ^JP"TPW     But  even  so   the 

...    T  ••- 

couplet  is  metrically  insufficient.     There  has  been  mutilation. 

4-     r\yi  a  rare  form,     "y^  (cp.  v.  17)  ;  '  my  thoughts  '  (so  G  S)  is  an 

Aramaizing-  interpretation.  The  editor,  who  had  a  bad  text,  may  have 
meant  this. 

5.  /l"*!!   ^y2"n   "Tnhi.     it  is  usual  but  unnatural  to  take  'IJ^  and 

T    •••     •    :   . :       -IT 

'3*1  (Aram,  for  ""ji^"))  as  infif.  with  suft'.  Cp.  Lag.,  Sonitica,  i,  28.  IJarth 
{ZDMG,  1887,  p.  O07)  renders  'T  'thou  measurest,  determinest  with 
precision '  (cp.  TV\X)  ;  the  Tg.  implies  a  conne.xion  with  ")!  "  a  stranger.' 

The  truth,  however,  is  that  the  editor  had  before  him  an  unintelligible 
text.     G's  i^i-)(y[a(Ta^  (  =  j^~ipn)  seems  to  be  a  guess. 

6.  njlJ^DH  ;    a  choice   but  here  not   a  natural    expression,  which 
would  probably  require  after  it  the  accus.  of  the  person  (see  Job  xxii.  21). 

7  f.    Possible  but  not  probable;  cp.  xix.  4,  which  is  equally  suspicious. 
n^S,  '  every  part  of  it,'  is  superfluous. 


2l8  THE    PSALMS. 

<■)■  ^JJ^Ia-  Not  clear,  (i  2  S  J  imply  'jri"liJ\  Neither  reading  is 
original. 

II.  Kt.  ^''^J'?3  may  bland,  though  >J<'?3,  Kt.,  Judg.xiii.  i8,  is  corrupt 
(see  C>if.  /y//;.).— Read  Di^in  ;  H  was  absorbed.     G  2  S  imply  "^I^yH- 

'5  f-  pDK  and  n^^hJ  are  not  parallel.  Besides  the  former  is  an 
incredible  Aramaism.  and  the  latter  is  not  plain  enough  ((i  kuto^w,  a 
guess).  15ut  this  is  not  all.  The  idea  of  a  man's  ascending  to  heaven  to 
escape  (]od,  is  surely  most  absurd.  We  ought  to  take  a  hint  from  the 
story  of  Jonah,  who  '  rose  up  to  tlee  to  Tarshish  from  the  presence  of 
Yah  we  '  (Jon.  i.  3).  Now  ti^'tinn  is  a  frequent  editorial  substitute  for 
"n^N  (")^^I^^J),  and  -)r^ii  (Asshur),  D'uL'ID  (Cusham)  and  ':'N*;?ai:;> 
(Ishmacl)  are  virtual  synonyms,  meaning  districts  of  N.  Arabia.  That 
Dti'lD  may  be  miswritten  D\'2ti',  and  that  bii^^DI^"^  may  become  'p^^Jti^ 
needs  no  showing,  now  that  we  are  approaching  Ps.cl.     Read  therefore  in 

/•   15'  Dt3  D12N'~DN\  and  in  /.  16  ^Xrr.2'i:>"'  ^^i*Sn.      The   later  editor 

T  •..  T         .  '^  ..  .. : 

thought  probably  of  Am.  ix.  2. 

17  f  'The  wings  of  the  dawn.'"  Are  we  to  infer  the  existence  in 
Hel:)rew  mythology  of  a  '  bird  of  the  dawn?'  This  can  hardly  be.  If 
the  text  is  at  least  in  the  main  correct,  we  must  read  DIH  (for  inii^), 
and  accept  Goldzihers  view  (Ne/>.  Myth.,  116)  that  /.  17  refers  to  the 
rising,  and  /.  18  to  the  setting  sun.  The  sun  at  any  rate  can  be  said  to 
have  wings  (Mai.  iii.  20),  and  to  alight  in  the  west.  This  is  the  view 
taken  in  Eiic.  Bib.,  '  Earth,  Four  Quarters  of  But  this  hyperbole  is 
excessive,  and  it  is  more  probable  that  "^TW  should  be  po'inted 
"inZ^^linZ'S  (.\shhur  in  N.  Arabia)  ;    see  Crit.  Bib.  on  Isa.  xiv.  12. 

Read  therefore  linZ'^^  '^y^^  2Iiy^<,  and  in  the  ||  line,  for  D'  nnili^n 

read  ]D>  "'n3T3.     Cp.  on  □VJTT  n^Il^^,  Gen.  xlix.  i.  Num.  xxiv.  14. 

Gunkel's    new    rendering    for    /^^"^^^^    (' Grund')— see    Schopf.    53— is 
arbitrary,  but  it  was  well  to  question  the  old  one. 

19-     ^I  ""^^7^0  '  ^^■oi''<^l  '^''ifl  me  (at  its  will) '  ?      Parallelism  suggests 

^jnpri  (Cir.,  Du.). 
. ..  't  • 

21  ff.  Point  T^NT  (Driver,  Duhm)  ;  2  ihv  8e  e'inco  ;  J  si  dixero.— 
M  ^J31;£;^;  G  KaTan-aTijo-fi  /xe  (cp.  Gen.  iii.  15).  Most  (Ew.,  Bi.,  Gr., 
Che.o,  Bri.,  Kau.,  We.,  Dr.,  Du.)  read  >J3D^  CJDID^),  but  ''32Dn  occurs 
in  another  sense  in  /.  26.  We  have  also  learned  to  distrust  hyperboles. 
It  is  in  fact  not  only  ^l^W  but  "^ZTT,  and  in  //.  23  f.  not  only  '*J1^*2  but 
"IIN  ny^.  which  requires  such  a  correction  as  to  bring  the  passage  into 
harmony  with  the  preceding  stanzas.  The  easiest  corruption  to  heal  is 
n7V,    which   should,    in    accordance    with    a    number   of    parallels,    be 


PSALM    CXXXIX.  219 

"^i^DHlV  But  in  what  sense  could  '  Jeiahmeel' be  here  used?  As  the 
name  of  a  region  it  occurs  in  a  shorter  form  in  /.  18.  It  might  be  the 
name  of  a  people,  but  this  is  not  at  all  likely  in  the  expression  of  a  wish 
on  the  part  of  an  Israelite.  Can  it  be  the  name  of  a  river?  Let  us  try 
this  idea.  The  speaker's  supposed  object  is  to  escape  from  Gods  eye. 
Read  ■'^ybl'  b^f^HI'  nX"!,  and  in  the  parallel  line  read  -|^^■TT^^ 
^JBtDX'**-     Tbc  latter  reading  in\olvcs  two  slight  changes,  viz.  1  for  "| 

and  tO  foi'  V  Tbe  sense  produced  is  perfect.  'Only  let  Shihor  overflow 
me,  only  let  the  streams  of  Jerahmeel  swallow  me  up,  and  no  trace  of  my 
existence  will  meet  God's  eye.  (Shihor  and  Jerahmeel  are  probably  the 
wadys  bounding  Ashhur  and  Jerahmeel  respectively  ;  see  Enc:  Bib., 
'  Shihor.')  In  v.  12  'Shihor'  again  appears  as  '\DT\i  and  'Jerahmeel'  as 
n'?'^     Read— 

T        :  '  T  ••::-• 

For  the  D^^^''  of  Jerahmeel,  cp.  Isa.  vii.  18,  xxxvii.  25,  &c.     I'or  O'lT  cp. 

Josh.  iii.  16.  The  closing  words  of  v.  12  come  from  "^liTl^  and  VHM^ 
(3  arbitrarily  prefixed). 

25  f.  Hitz.,  W'ellh.,  and  Duhm  place  ?'.  14^,  /'  before  7'.  13,  to 
l)roduce  a  better  connexion  ;  v.  14  looks  to  them  like  the  beginning  of  a 
new  section.  Very  plausible.  But  the  editor  did  not  so  arrange  it, 
because  he  rewrote  a  passage  which  was  really  in  its  right  place. 

27  f.  For  \-|"''73:  Ba.  and  We.  read  njl'''?33  ;  cp.  G  S  J  T,  which 
presuppose  2nd  person.  But  '  I  thank  thee  because  thou  hast  been 
wonderful'  is    not   cjuite   satisfactory.     Houb.,    Herz    ^ri^TSJ-     Rather 

read  ^'j^^<'p^r'?i^  "^y^.  D'^<'7^]  is  a  variant  to  msm:,  which 
should  b'j  D'NII^.     The  closing  words  of  7A  14,  '^'^t2   DPT   ""uySJ  have 

grown  out  of  IND  D'i<"^i:  '^''''i:y}y\- 

30  f.     G  e  S  presuppose  TM^'-^V  ;  ^"1'  "'npp"! ,  '  I  \vas  embroidered  ' 

{('nuiKiXdiji',     A   2),    d    gives    rj    iiruaTuaU'   l^()v^^p\^'^^^\ •     Possibly   the 

editor  who  rewrote  the  psalm  put  ^int''?in.     How  Qp")  may  have  come 

to  supplant  ^t'lrr,  \ve  shall  see  later.  How  "  the  nether  parts  of  the 
earth '  arose,  we  shall  also  see  presently. 

32  flf.  M  \'D'pil  (Pasek  follows),  'my  embryo,'  /.t'.  as  2  puts  it, 
iin6i)(f)(0Tvi'  fJLc,  J  infoi  mcDi  adhiii  Die.     No  doubt  it  is  a  corruption.     The 

original  is  probablv,  not  •';313,  but  S^^^2m^— M  "\y\  nj*""  WW .     Bii. 
-  t:  t\         .t 

would  transpose,  rendering  v.  lO  thus,  '  When  1  was  still  dough  {i.e. 
unformed),  thine  eyes  saw  me  ;  days  were  formed,  and  in  thy  Ijook  arc 
they  all  written,  when  as    yet  not  one  of  them  exists.'     Hitz.  and   Del. 


220  THE    PSALMS. 

make  a  slii^ht  iini)rovemenl  by  adoptin.^   tlie  Kr.  i'PT  (referring  to  V^'?^  ''); 

^  iivK  (v8env<Tt]<i  ov^fiLtiii  (inserting  Tiyj  "'').     Let  us  rather  leave  the  editor 

T :  v 
in  his  perplexity. 

36.  M  >St.  Needless  emphasis.  •''?^+•D^  =  D^'^'?^<•— 40.  "^^Op. 
Again  only  in  Job  xiii.  15  (corrupt),  xxi\  .  14. 

41  ft'.  T  S  imply  TIIDV—M  TjT)D*' ;  the  Easterns  insert  M.  Houb., 
Hu.,  Dr.,  Du..  &c.  point  tTTi;^^-  Certainly  not  the  original  reading,  and 
yet  perhaps  intended  by  the  editor.  E'  TraptniKpavav  ;  G^  ipia-rai  (a-re. 
Similarly  'A  2  0  J.— M  NWi-     Ol.  and  most  ^hi'^J .— Tir-     ^o.  01., 

T  :  T  '      VT 

J3ruston,  Gr.,  Bi.,  Che.<".  Kau.,  We.,  Du.,  correct  "^Dp  (see  Ex.  xx.  7). 
Hut  see  the  underlying  text. 

45.    Read  DDpJnSt  -^^^Dip/ipaT  (We.). 

We  now  turn  to  the  text  of  the  supposed  original  poem.  In  the 
rewritten  psalm  there  are  certainly  some  passages  in  which  the  freedom 
of  an  original  writer  can  be  traced.  But  there  are  others  which  baffle 
explanation  unless  we  suppose  that  in  this,  as  in  other  psalms,  the  editor 
has  recast  the  partly  corrupt  material  which  lay  before  him,  the  contents 
of  which  were  widely  different  from  the  contents  of  the  recast  and 
expanded  psalm  of  which  he  was  virtually  the  author. 

In  t'.  2  of  the  common  text  we  find  '^!2')p^  Tl^ti'-  Probably  ']i; 
comes  from  /lan^,  and  'p  represents  JID^D-  The  'terrible  works' 
spoken  of  in  f.  14  (cp.  Ixv.  6)  are  the  '  work '  anticipated  by  a  fervent 
faith — the  ultimate  overthrow  of  the  N.  Arabian  oppressor.  The  names 
'Zarephath'  and  'Maacath'  also  appear  to  underlie  two  troublesome 
words  ("IDD  and  j~)Vj"inj1)  in  7'.  15.  Two  other  ethnic  names  ('  Ashhur' 
and  '  Arabia')  are  probably  concealed  under  the  two  strange  words  ^fTlhi 
and  "*P^"1  in  7>.  3,  and  in  restoring  them  to  light  we  account  for  the 
otherwise  inexplicable  verb  /mT.     Of  the  other  verbs  in  //.  14  of  the 

T      •«. 

'  original  psalm,'  one  (r\^i:\)  is  suggested  by  xliv.  3  (corrected  text), 
another  (J^J/'^DH)  is  suggested  by  Ixxxi.  15,  and  confirmed  perhaps  by 
cx.xxix.  2l>,  where  M's  text  may  have  come  out  of  "^S^m^  j"13,03n,  and 
by  7'.  13,  where  the  same  origin  may  be  assigned  to  (njnN~"'D) 
^IvJ   j"l^Jp.     Thus  stanza  1  becomes — 

r^Dy'2   ji;rij   ,-tj-)n 

\'crse  4  has  been  evolved  by  the  editor  out  of  'nT'  711^  bi<i"2ti''  Tl"!^. 
In  7'.   5  both    "nriN    and    Ulp    represent    '^NrjnT'   (so  in   Isa.  ix.   11); 


PSALM    CXXXIX.  221 

whether '  bad  shots  '  may  account  for  the  rest  of  v.  5  is  uncertain.  Verse  \'})b 
is  also  uncertain  ;  on  v.  \ia  see  above.  In  v.  15  1DQ  ^tyiV  "THDJ  hi*? 
has  probably  come  out  of  /ID^Q  yiN  ^Nl'jm'',  which  may  perhaps 
have  stood  in  the  margin  as  a  correction  of  Y"1^5  DVjirfj"!  H/ID  (on 
which  see  above).  We  are  now  able  to  explain  the  troublesome  ^/I'^p"!, 
instead  of  which  the  editor  who  recast  the  psalm  (as  we  have  seen)  read 
Tl'?';)in.  The  true  reading  probably  is  jl"'^3.  Probably  Dpi,  i-c. 
'?NDm\  stood  in  the  margin  as  a  gloss  on  PdV^  \'yt^-  Read  there- 
fore as  //.  7,  8, — 

j-iDyo  v-ihJ2  Tshzi 

Between  stanzas  2  and  3  comes,  at  least  in  M's  text,  a  mass  of 
corruption,  to  which  the  editor  has  done  his  best  (which  is  little  enough) 
to  give  an  appearance  of  sense.  It  is  v.  16,  which  opens  with  the 
'jargon '-word  '^'Chy.  The  text  before  the  editor  appears  to  have  given 
(in  a  very  corrupt  form)  the  following  ethnics, — jlD^j'^  "T'  n31ji  '")^  '1^ 
"1^  "IliJQ  'T-  In  Dn^,  at  the  end  of  the  verse,  2  may  belong  to  the 
same  group  as  "T^T^{^Jb^  (under  which  his  "^^NQni"'),  and  Qn  may 
contribute  with  ^^1  (^-  i?)  to  represent  DM'pK- 

Let  us  now  seek  to  explain  stanza  3  {vv.  17  f.).  "^^^^^  ought  to  mean 
ot  <f)iXoiaov  (Cj);  ^1  is  not  synonymous  with  ]V^"1.  Nor  is  OIT'ti^T.  '  their 
sums'  (or  chiefs),  natural,  'jy')  m^iy  be  a  fragment  of  "fS^yT^i^  (cp. 
7'.  23),  and  this  to  be  a  corruption  of  t^'^'V^D  (D  became  H))  and  T  was 
inserted;  cp.  Ezek.  xxxi.  5).  The  mysterious  clause,  "JjQy  HlpT  ^Jllk^pn, 
has  probably  been   produced  on  the  basis  of  a  corruption  of  ^'Diplji 

W  "^nom .  "     '  * 

Corruption  has  also  accumulated  between  stanzas  3  and  4.  Verses  19 
and  20  appear  to  have  consisted  originally  of  the  scribe's  '  bad  shots '  at 
the  following  ethnics,  viz.  'tir>  D■)^*  'li'^  '^Wii  "1^  '"1^  IWi^  '1^  'T* 
'-)>  '^-.  '^^  'I^^  '-)>  mt^^J.  Happily  there  is  nothing  fresh  to  mention 
in  stanza  4.  and  only  three  points  in  stanza  5.  These  are  (a)  ^ByT^iT 
(7'.  23),  which  should  probably  be  ^''^Vi2-  See  above  on  stanza  3  (7'.  17), 
and  cp.  on  xciv.  19,  cxix.  113.  (d)  2)iV  ("''•  -4)-  Most  (Hi.,  Hu.,  Dc., 
Bii.,  Du.,  &.C.)  render  'pain'  ;  cp.  H^jii^rj,  Isa.  1.  11.  Ges.  and  Sicgfr.- 
Sta.,  however,  prefer  '  idolatry '  (cp.  ^2jil7,  Isa.  xlviii.  5).  while   Gr.  would 

read  y^2-  (0  o'piy,  '  the  ancient  (way)';  cp.  Jer.  vi.  16.  So  Ol.  (after 
T).  Or,  '  the  enduring  (way),'  so  Del.,  Bii.  (after  G).  These  explana- 
tions are  makeshifts.  Having  before  us  tlie  danger  from  Jerahmeelite 
religious  influences  let  us  read  (for  3:»'l')  '?^iyQ^i/'' and  (fi)f  ub^y)  S^i'^HT- 
Cp.  Isa.  Ivii.  17,  where  (for  l^v^n  |U'3)  read  ':)Nj;r^i:r>  ]'\);2- 


222  THE    PSALMS. 


PSALM    CXL. 

1  RiMr.iKRs  AND  TETRAMKTERS.  Isiacl  supplicates  for  vengeance  upon  its 
foes.  The  chronologically  precise  datings  of  Olshausen  and  Hitzig  lack  sound 
basis.  The  foes  are  the  N.  Arabians,  but  there  is  an  artificiality  about  the  whole 
poem  which  detracts  from  its  liistoric.il  value.  The  Arabian  opjiression  may  have 
gone  on,  but  though  the  Jews  may  have  had  good  grounds  for  complaint,  the  times 
were  not  as  rritiial  &•>  a  first  reading  of  this  psalm  might  suggest.  Evidently  the 
psalm  is  late,  but  wc  cannot  corroborate  this  by  arguments  drawn  from  the  plural 

D^Di^n,  T7'.  2,  5,  or  from  ^Di'J,  v.  lo  (Griitz,  reading  DiHDl^,   'their   tabic'), 

T  ■     : 

or  from  jmsmQ,  J'.  12,  anymore  than  we  can  argue  for  the  existence  of  an 

ancient  substratum  from  the  three  '  Selahs '  (fr.  4,  6,  9),  which  certainly  owe 
their  origin  to  corruption  of  the  te.xt.  Note  also  in  this  connexion  the  dis- 
appearance of  the  suffix  in  1Q  as  a  result  of  textual  criticism.  On  form  of  psalm, 
cp.  D.  H.  Miiller,  Slrophenbait,  61  ff.  ;  Duhm  and  Grimme  agree. 


Deposited.     Marked :    of  ^Arab-etlian 

I     Rescue  me,  O  Yahwe  !  from  Aram, 

From  Asshur  and  from  Cusham  preserve  me. 

For  the}'  plan  evil  actions  in  the  heart, 

The}'  stir  up  wars  continually', 

Ishmael,  Maacath,  and  Cush, 

Those  of  Rehoboth  and  of  Zarephath.^ 

Rescue  me,  O  Yahwe  !  from  Aram, 
From  Asshur  and  from  Cusham  preserve  me, 
For  they  plan  to  thrust  my  feet, 
10     The  traitors  have  hidden  snares  for  me,  1 

Those  of  Jerahmeel  and  of  Zarephath, 
Those  of  Cush  and  of  Ishmael. 

I  say  unto  Yahw^,  Thou  art  my  God  : 

Hear,  O  Yahwb  !  my  suppliant  voice  ! 

O  Yahwe,-  my  delivering  Rock  !  ; 

Destroy  Ishmael  as  in  the  day  of  Cushan. 

Rescue  me,  O  Yahwb  !  from  Aram  [and  from]  Asshur,  < 

From  Ishmael,  and  from  Maacath,  and  from  Jerahmeel.'^ 

Those  of  Jerahmeel  shall  give  way,  11,  I: 

20     Asshur  and  Cusham,  and  Ishmael  and  Zarephath  ! 

'  Jerahmeel.  "  O  Lord. 

'  Asshur,    Lshmael,    Zarephathites,    and    Cushites. 


PSALM    CXI,.  223 

For  Yahwe  will  plead  the  cause  of  the  sufferer,  13 

The  right  of  the  poor  [he  will  maintain]. 
Verily  the  righteous  will  give  thanks  to  thy  name,  14 

The  upright  will  be  satisfied  with  thy  countenance. 

I,  5' 9-   Aram,  Asshur.  As  usual,  16.    7'he  d'ay  of  Citshan.     Cp.  '  the  day 

the  southern  Aram  (=  Jerahnieel)  antl  of  Midian,"  Isa.  i\.  3.    l'ossil>ly  Othniel's 

Asshur   (=Ashhur,    and    Cleshur)    are  victory  over  '  Cushan-risliathaim  '  (see 

meant. — 4.  They  stir  up  wars.    Strictly  F.nc.    Bib.   s.  v.)    is    meant,    or    some 

speaking,     this    is     inconsistent     with  other    great    battle   in    which    the   N. 

the  description  of  the  treachery  of  the  Arabian  foe  was  defeated.     .See  critical 

foes    in   //.  9  f.  ;     cp.    Ps.    cxx.— 10.  note. — 19.    Cp.    on    xi.    6. — 24.    Cp. 

Cp.  ix.   16,  xxxi.  5,  Ivii.  7,  Ixiv.  6. —  xvii.  15. 

Critical  Notes,  i  f.,  7  f.  These  two  couplets  were  evidently  meant 
to  agree  (see  also  on  //.  17  f.).  "'JTiJ/l  is  miswritten  (see  on  Ixi.  8)  for 
^J');:3lt'n-  Consequently  ''T\12V ,  which  opens  v.  5,  should  be  ''j:i^rT. 
For   □1^JQ   read    Q~)^i'3.      ^"1    and    t^^'h}    together   represent    ■1•^Z'^<  ; 

D'*Dl!3n  comes  from  D'vi^^rjT  (cp.  on  xviii.  49). 

T  ••.    . 

4.  Read  DViTt'D  (G,  Kenn.),  and  nj^  with  Ol.,  Gr.  .S:c.  (cp.  hi.  7, 
lix.  4). 

5  f.  'Sharpened  their  tongue  like  a  serpent'?  'Poison  of  *'? 
VJ^JlSi:^  ought  to  warn  us  (cp.  on  xvii.  i,  4)  ;  "^"^b-,  too,  may  represent 
'^'My^Sli'"'  (see  on  Isa.  xi.  15). 

:  T-:-  ••  T  :  • 

•  T    :    :  •  : 

n'?D,  at  the  end  of  7'?'.  4,  6,  9,  as  often,  represents  'l^i^/'^irTT .  'The 
meaning  of  QVii^Dy  is  uncertain'  (Duhni)  ;  more  than  uncertain!  It 
must  be  admitted,  however,  that  '<U^'23y!  (for  ZniiOP).  presupposed  by  T 
(so  Merx  and  Gr.),  is  ingenious.     .See  Enc.  Bib.,  '  Spider.' 

7  f.  n"'D  comes  from  D"^^<^:5  ;  yiVS  and  ^n^)XC)  from  nVii^r^Q .— M 
D^i^il-     Read  0^33,  (see  on  xciv.  2). 

II  f.     f^rom  D"'':'2m  to  n'^D  (7'.  6)  is  a  collection  of  corrupt  ethnics,— 

'■)'•  b\?iyi^'^''  D''^3  '1^  'i:i  /i3"i^  '^kSomv    g's  ror?  ttoo-iV  i^ov  also 

comes  from  t'N?Drn^.     Read  therefore — 

15  f.  For  Tj7  read,  probably,  12J  (see  on  xxviii.  8).  — M  nj"ni2D 
^li^J^n'?,    -I   choice,   but    here    not    a   very   natural    expression.      Read 


224  THK    PSALMS. 

bayyV"  Dntn.      bUlW   and    bi^yr^TV^    are   sometimes    confounded 

(like  '^XIK''  and  Dy^^Tl")-  — ^I    p'p^   D^''2,  'on   the  day  of  armour'? 

Read  Vji^S  DT3.     See  exeg.  note. 
T  \  : 

17  f.  M  ^''TK!D.  G  dni}  tJ)?  iinOvyiUis ;  'A  f'ntnodrjfjLaTa  ;  2  rar  «7ri- 
dv^ias ;  T  ■'J^D")  ;  J  desida-ia.  The  double  irregularity  need  not  here 
be  discussed.  The  reference  to  the  'suppliant  voice'  leads  us  to  expect 
a  repetition  of  the  prayer  for  rescue  from  Aram,  and  the  other  words  in 
V.  9,  including  n'^D,  are  very  possible  corruptions  of  ethnics.  In  no 
other  way  can  pDJl~'?N  Xyi2i\  be  e.xplained  ;  QQt  is  an  impossible  aV. 
Aty.  ;   and   how  can  li^l"!''  mean  '  (for)  they  would  exalt   themselves '  ? 

T 

On  the  vss.,  see  Bathgen.     Read — 

V.  10,  as  all  agree,  is  most  obscure.  But,  to  an  experienced  eye,  every 
word  in  it  is  clearly  a  corruption  of  an  ethnic ;  for  ''^DD,  cp.  the  familiar 
corruptions  •<2i:'''  and  'DU"  (for  '''))X};!m:^)-  The  ethnics  are— "nt^'J^ 
D^Ii'DI  DTIS"^'^  '7^<iO'^^,  a  catalogue  which  exhibits  the  scribe's  learn- 
ing, but  has  no  place  in  the  poem. 

19.  Kt.  tlO^;::*;  better,  as  Kr.,  Vt^DlDV  DH''':'^  and  ^■h^'i,  both 
represent  D^t'Nl^m^  (D  and  D  confounded)  ;  both  are  scribes'  attempts 
to  get  sense  out  of  a  miswritten  and  perhaps  dittographed  TTIV  (The 
conjecture  ITID^  or  "inp^  [Kenn.,  Hu.,  Gr.,  Ba.,  (S:c.]  is  derived  from 

xi.  6,  which,  however  [see  note],  is  corrupt).  What  follows  is  most 
improbable  in  itself  and  metrically  excessive.  D7^D'^  Ii^N2  simply 
represents  D''':'^*;^l"2U'^  a  variant  to  D"'':'SDm"'.  Similarly  j-n-),'::nD3 
l!31p''~'?2  (who  can  venture  to  defend  TTD  ?)  represents  other  attempts  of 
a  scribe  to  make  sense  of  a  miswritten  Tf")^ ;  we  therefore  disregard  it. 
Read  D^'rNrjn"!^  VtOIDV 

20.  We  also  make  no  ubc  of  the  opening  words  of  v.  12,  for  they 
simply  represent  jlSlIi  '?^<rJ^-|^  '7W:2i:'\  which  is  dittographic.  What 
the  psalmist  wrote  most  probably  was  TStH'^^  '?W;'2X'"T  UVys  "SW^- 
Of  these  four  names,  a  is  represented  by   li^^J^+l'l, '''  by  DDH,  f  by 

i:iv::^  (cp.  wrv^)^  d  by  '?^<rQ^''• 

22.  Insert  IDS'*^'"'  (metre).  24.  M  'S2.V^ .  Read  ipZl'li'^  (Schorr, 
Geiger,  Kroch.,  Gr.). 


PSALM    CXLI.  225 

PSALM  CXLI. 

i  HE  same  subject  continued.  The  original  psalm  (in  trimeters)  was  rewritten 
by  an  editor.  There  is  nothin|j,  if  we  have  in  the  main  rightly  restored  it, 
which  suggests  a  specially  late  date.  It  is  only  v.  a,b  and  v.  7  which  have 
appeared  to  favour  a  date  in  the  Greek  period,  but  these  passages  are  not 
safe  enough  to  appeal  to ;  indeed,  the  strong  probdbility  is  that  the  points 
to  which  critics  have  referred  are  solely  due  to  textual  corruption  (cp.  on 
Ps.  xvi.).  The  'scattering'  of  an  Israelitish  host  mentioned  in  /.  8  of  the 
'original  psalm'  may  have  been  an  event  in  the  period  wiiich  preceded  the 
arrival  of  Nehemiah  at  Jerusalem.  Coblenz  (p.  190)  remarks  that  the  cor- 
ruptness of  the  text  makes  it  hard  to  decide  whether  the  community  or  an 
individual  is  the  speaker  ;  he  inclines,  however,  to  the  second  view,  interpreting 
P^"?f>j  in   V.  5    not  of  God   (as    Bii.,  after  Hengstenberg),    but  of  any  righteous 

friend  (as  Del.).  Biithgen  takes  the  other  view,  basing  this  on  the  intelligible 
part  of  the  psalm — though  v.  5a  is  surely  not  so  clear  as  this  scholar  supposes. 
He  also  approves  Theodore's  reference  of  the  psalm  to  circumstances  of  the 
p]xile.  Duhm  finds  no  clear  indications  of  date;  as  usual  he  makes  the  speaker 
an  individual.  If,  however,  Ecclus.  xxii.  27  is  really  dependent  on  Ps.  cxli.  3, 
it  would  seem  that  the  psalm  must  have  been  written  or  rewritten  before 
the  composition  of  the  original  Ecclesiasticus.  We  may  (probably)  with 
general  accuracy,  and  even  with  some  approach  to  accuracy  of  detail,  restore 
the  original  psalm  thus, — 

I     O  Yahwe  !  I  call  upon  thee,  attend  unto  me  ;  i 
Listen  to  my  voice  when  I  call  unto  thee. 

Cause  the  Pelethites  to  bow  down  before  me,  2 

Destroy  Jerahmeel  and  Zarephath.  3 

O  Yahwe  !  in  thy  lovingkindness  correct  me,  5 
Let  not  Asshur  deal  with  me  as  guilty  ! 

For  the  Pelethites  and  Zarephathites  shout  in  triumph,         6 

For  the  Ishmaelites  have  scattered  our  host.  7 

For  unto  thee,  O  Yahwe  !  mine  eyes  ^.are  raised-t- ;  8 
10     In  thee  do  I  trust,  forsake  not  my  soul. 

Preserve  me  from  Jerahmeel  and  from  Cush,  9 
From  the  plots  of  the  Asshuritcs  and  the  Arabians. 

This  psalm  of  highly  wrought  feeling  was  modified  by  the  redactor, 
much  as  Ps.  xvi.  and  other  parallel  psalms  were  modified.  Corrup- 
tion too  suggested  (in  vi'.  4-7)  some  strange  and  at  first  sight  striking 
ideas — only  the  form  of  expression  is  so  odd  that  the  commentators  are 
to  blame  for  assigning  the  ideas  and  the  form  of  expression  to  the 
psalmist.  Apart  from  this  spurious  originality  the  psalm  was  greatly 
weakened  by  being  rewritten.  On  the  text,  cp.  Grimme,  Ps.-probleme, 
pp.  126  f. 

Marked.     Of  'Arab-ethan.  i 

I     O  Yahwb  !  I  call  upon  thee,  attend  unto  me  ; 
Listen  to  my  voice  when  I  call  unto  thee. 
Let  my  prayer  stand  +as+  a  sweet  smoke  before  thee,  2 

The  lifting  up  of  my  hands  +as+  the  evening  oblation. 
II.  Q 


226  THE    PSALMS. 

Set  a  watch(?),  O  Yahwe  !  upon  my  mouth,  3 

A  guard(?)  on  the  door(?)  of  my  hps. 

IncHne  not  my  heart  to  any  evil  thing,  4 

Presumptuously  to  commit  actions  in  wickedness, 

With  men(?),  workers  of  wrong, 
lo     And  may  I  not  eat  of  their  dainties(?)  ! 

Let  the    righteous  smite  me  in    lovingkindness(?),  and 

correct  me,  5 

The  oil  of  the  wicked — let  it  not  moisten  my  liead. 

For  yet — my  prayer  is  in  their  misfortunes(?). 

Their  judges  are  thrown  down  into  the  hands  of  the  rock,     6 

And  will  hear  my  words,  for  they  are  sweet. 

As  when  one  ploughs  and  cleaves  in  the  earth,  7 

Our  bones  are  scattered  at  the  mouth  of  Sheol. 

For  unto  thee,  O  Yahwe  !  mine  eyes  +are  raised+,  8 

In  thee  do  I  trust,  pour  not  out  my  soul. 
20     Preserve  me  from  the  hands  of  the  snare  of  those  who 

set  gins  for  me,  9 

And  +from+  the  gins  of  the  workers  of  wrong. 

Let  the  wicked  fall  into  his  own  nets, 

While  I  at  the  same  time  pass  on. 

The  most  secure  corrections  of  the  manipulated  text  are  in  lines 
I  and  12.  In  /.  i  H'^i^in  should  be  n2"'t:'pn.  Winckler's  root  WT\ 
'  to  give  heed'  {AOF'^^^  i.  50)  has  questionable  grounds. 

In  /.  12  (7/.  5)  G  has  i'Xaiov  8e  (ifxapTiaXov  /xi)  AiTrai-tirco  r))v  K€(f)a\T]v  /xov, 
i.e.  ^t'^l  W^^'b^  V^~^  \'C)V^■  The  reading  Dn\':3^y  in  v.  7!)  pre- 
supposed  by  G''  and  S  (see  Bii.)  is  surely  a  mere  guess.  In  7'.  3  note  the 
words  7r\72V,  TV^I^,  and  '^1,  which  have  not  been  satisfactorily 
justified. 

Turning  now  to  the  '  original  ))salm,'  we  dwell  first  on  //.  3,  4. 
Evidently  the  gentle,  poetic  prayer  in  7'.  2  is  not  the  true  successor  of  the 
impassioned  appeal  in  v.  i.  Nor  is  this  prayer  itself  quite  free  from 
difficulty;  JTIDp  is  not  a  perfect  parallel  to  31^  jlTOD,  and  then- 
why  mention  the  evening  at  all?  "JIDD,  as  in  xciii.  i,  may  come  from 
I'^IDn,  and  the  puzzling  JlltOp  niay  have  the  same  origin.  ^jn'73n, 
both  here  and  in  7'.  5,  seems  to  come  from  ^"173  (Pelethite  =  Zare- 
phathite  ;  see  Kfic.  Bib.  '  Pclclliite.') — /'.  2b  is  an  editorial  work,  based 
on  a  corruption  of  yy^  b'^t^PH^  btUVCW -,  three  ethnics,  or  rather  two 
(TFT  being  simply  a  variant  to  'li;'),  combined.  "'SD  (cp.  Crit.  Bib.  on 
'^D-S,  Gen.  xxi.  22)  and  JHTOD  (from   \t2TV\)  both  represent  '?N^:mV 


PSALMS    CXLI.,    CXLII.  227 

V.  3  has  grown  out  of  D^'l^i']  'PITT  'D1V'^  nT")  'r^TV'  Sl'niVD. 
Metre  requires  two  of  the  ethnics  to  be  chosen  ;  we  naturally  choose 
'  Jerahmeel '  and  'Zarephath.' — V.  4  is  useless,  having  been  evolved  out  of 

D^bi^on-i^  'nn^  'dv  -)Wi^  'm^  'm^  an;?  iv^X^)  'ni^  ':'j<Qnn% 

in  the  middle  of  which  is  inserted  the  gloss  pS"vPD-  Note  the  two 
Legarmehs  and  the  Pasek.  In  v.  ^a  ^JQ/H^  (cp.  on  cxviii.  iO(^)  comes 
from  DvhJ'Om*,  a  gloss  properly  belonging  to  z'.  4. 

V.   5a  comes  from    'bii    "^r^ii   O^V^t]]    ^JHOh    ^70112    mn^ 

^iV^ty_  (for  ]'2*:;  cp.  on  civ.  15);  r-.  s^  from  QMEii'^ii  DT\^^  lyn^"^. 

Notice  that  TDn  and  p"TU  are  liable  to  confusion.  It  is  very  possible, 
however,  and  even  probable,  that  pH^  (Pasek  follows)  is  a  corruption 
of  ^"HDl^nj  ;  at  any  rate,  the  sense  requires  this  reading. 

In  T'.  6  lIDI^SIi'j  and  Dn'DSti'  both  probably  come  from  DTlS^ii  ; 
^"2  comes  from  n")^;  V^D  and  ipDI^^I  from  bi^V^T^'' •  o' HDi^ 
from  7j<^m^;  T2i'J  from  ]f2^ ■  This  is  merely  a  scribe's  catalogue, 
and  forms  no  part  of  the  poem.  In  :-.  7a,  ^^2  <  PIT'S)  (once  more  cp. 
'?D''3),  and  yp31,  all  come  from  fragments  of  7i<;^n~lV  yiN^  comes 
from  in^,  or  from  jlSl^i;  t'.  7^  represents  Q^'^X;;,^::;^  ^J^*2i:  n)3  '3- 

In  7'.  8  *JTl^  is  superfluous  ;  ~)}?D  probably  comes  from  2'i}?D  (Gr.). 
In  V.  9  nS  ■'T'^D  with  >b,  comes  from  ^hi::^?!")''::,  Wp"  from'  ;^13;21, 
/ni^^pai  (we  expect  ""VpD)  from  Jli3li^rT?3;:2l.  In  t'.  loa  the  editor  has 
done  his  best  with  two  miswritten  forms  of  Dv^^.'!^^'T',  followed  by 
P"*pi^-l=Q^-n^^}.  In  z'.  lob  in"'  and  ip  ''D3^J  both  possibly  represent 
'!'^<^2m^  ;  m^^J^  comes  from  D^3"13?-  As  the  conclusion  of  /.  12 
D''3i;?1   Dmt^'h}  is  preferable  to   ]^^^    "hV^- 


PSALM    CXLII. 

1  RIMETERS.  A  more  plaintive  cry  for  help.  Theodore's  assignment  of 
this  psalm  to  the  captive  people  in  Babylon  has  still  more  justification  than 
even  Batligen,  who  favours  this  view,  supposes.  It  is  indeed  Israel  which 
languishes  in  prison  (cp.  Isa.  xlii.  7),  surely  not  an  Israelite  leader,  as  Hitzig, 
Delitzsch,  and  Duhm,  or  the  psalmist  hmiself,  as  Coblenz  (p.  184)  would 
have  it.  But  the  place  of  cajitivity  was  not  Babylon  but  Jerahmeel  (cp.  on 
cxxxvii.  l).  Like  Ps.  Ixxvii.  {v.  2),  our  psalm  puts  this  fact  in  the  forefront; 
'in  Jerahmeel  unto  Yahwe  I  cry '  (v.  2).  Other  parallel  passages  :  v.  3a,  cp. 
cii.  I  ;  V.  4a,  cp.  Ixxvii.  4  ;  v.  ^/),  cp.  Job  xi.  20  ;  v.  6c,  cp.  xvi.  5,  Ixxiii.  26, 
cxix.  57  ;  V.  8a,  cp.  Isa.  xlii.  7. 

Deposited.     Of'Arab-e/hafi.    \_0f  David ^  when  he  -ivas  in /er.ih/neei.'] 

A  prayer.  I 

]     III  Jerahmeel  unto  Yahvvfe  I  cry,  2 

In  Jerahmeel  unto  Yahwe  I  make  supplication  ; 
I  pour  out  before  him  my  complaint,  3 

Before  him  my  trouble  I  declare. 


228  THE    PSALMS. 

For  my  spirit  within  me  is  astonished,  4 

But  thou  knowest  my  desire. 

In  the  path  wherein  I  am  wont  to  go, 

[The  JerahmeeHtes]  have  hidden  snares  for  me. 

I  look  on  the  right  hand,  and  gaze,  5 

10     [And  on  the  left,]  but  there  is  none  to  take  heed  of  me  ; 
All  retreats  are  cut  off  from  me. 
There  is  none  that  cares  for  my  life. 

I  cry  unto  thee,  O  Yahwe  !  6 

I  say.  Thou  art  my  refuge, 

My  portion  in  the  land  of  the  living. 

Hearken,  [O  Yahwe  !]  to  my  cry,  7 

For,  [as  for  me,]  I  am  brought  very  low  ; 
Rescue  me  from  ni}'  pursuers, 
20     For  they  are  too  mighty  for  me. 

Bring  my  soul  out  of  prison,  8 

That  I  may  give  thanks  to  thy  name  ; 
The  righteous  will  make  their  boast  of  me. 
Because  thou  dealest  bountifully  with  me. 

Critical  Notes.  Title,  m^^ro  and  d'^I^  (i  S.  xxii.  i)  both  re- 
present  '?i<Dn"l^ .     See  Crit.  Bib.  on  x  S.  xxii.  i. 

I  f.     M   tblp-     Read  '?^<D^■T'n  (as  iii.  5,  Ixxvii.  2). 

5  f.     Read  HOrin    ^3    (Ixxvii.  4).  and  (for  ^na^JlJ)  'n^^^.0• 

8.  Insert  D^'^'SDHI^  which  was  probably  written  corruptly  in  a 
form  resembling   ^7   nS   (cp.  on  cxli.  9). 

9  f.  Point  iD''3n  and  HNT  (Bii.).  GST  express  the  first  person. 
In  /.  ro  insert    '?^<D•^:r^. 

17  f.     Perhaps  insert  TWTV  and   >JJ^.     Grimme,  Tljnj")~'?N- 

23.     For  in^'^D^  ('surround,' as  enemies)  read  perhaps  TlhJSJT  (Gr.). 


PSALM    CXLIII. 

i  RIMETERS  and  dimeters.  Familiar  complaints  and  petitions  of  pious 
Israel  recast.  Cp.  e.g.  v.  3  with  vii.  ba,  xxxi.  13  (?),  ixxxviii.  4-7,  Lam.  iii.  6 ; 
V.  6  with  Ixiii.  5  and  2  ;  v.  "jb  with  xxviii.  i,  Ixxxviii.  5  ;  v.  10,7,  cp.  xxv.  4  f.  ;  v. 
\oh  (leading  of  the  divine  spirit),  cp.  Neh.  ix.  20;  v.  11,  cp.  cxix.  25,  37,  40,  &c. 
Theodore,  as  we  might  expect,  refers  the  psalm  to  the  captive  people  in  Babylon 
{ZATIV,  1885,  p.  90).  Cp.  introd.  to  Ps.  cxlii.,  and  note  the  probable  reading 
'  out  of  the  land  of  Missur '  (/.  30). 


PSALM    CXLIII.  22g 

Marked:    of  ''Arab-cthan.  I 

I  O  Yahwc  !  hear  my  prayer, 

Give  ear  to  my  supplication  ; 

In  thy  faithfulness  answer  me, 

In  thy  righteousness  [rescue  me].i 

For  the  Arabian  has  pursued  ni}'  soul,  3 

Has  crushed  to  the  ground  my  life  ; 

He  has  made  me  to  dwell  in  dark  places, 

As  the  dead  Jerahmeelites, 

So  that  my  spirit  is  astonished  within  me,  4 

10  My  heart  in  the  midst  of  me  is  appalled  ; 

I  remember  the  days  of  old,  5 

I  meditate  upon  all  thy  doing. 

I  muse  upon  the  work  of  thy  hands, 

I  spread  out  my  hands  unto  thee  ;  6 

I  long  as  a  thirsty  land 2 

For  thee,  O  God  ! 

Make  haste  to  answer  me,  O  Yahwe,  7 

Hide  not  thy  countenance  from  me, 

[Lest,  if  thou  spurn  me,]  I  resemble 
20  Those  that  have  gone  down  to  the  pit. 

Satisfy  me  early  with  thy  lovingkindness,  8 

For  in  thee  do  I  trust  ; 

Make  me  to  know  the  way  that  T  sliould  go. 

For  I  lift  up  my  soul  inito  thee. 

Rescue  me  from  the  Arabian,  O  Yahwe  !  9 

For  thee  do  I  long  : 

Teach  me  to  do  thy  will,  10 

For  thou  art  my  God. 

Let  thy  good  spirit  lead  me 
30  Out  of  the  land  of  Missur,  O  Yahwe  ! 

For  thy  name's  sake  revive  me,  1 1 

In  thy  righteousness. 

Bring  my  soul  out  of  distress, 

And  in  th}'  righteousness  suppress  mine  enemies,  12 

And  destroy  all  those  that  afflict  m}^  soul, 

For  I  am  thy  servant. 

'  And  enter  not  into  judgment  with  thy  servant,  for  none  that  lives  can  be 
righteous  before  thee  (z'.  2). 
*  My  spirit  pines. 


230  THE    PSALMS. 

Critical  Notes.     4.  Parallelism  and  metre   suggest    the    insertion  of 

^.     M  Tii^  (Pasek  follows).      Read   "•HI*   (xxvii.  2  &c.).— F.  2  is 

..  •  T~: 

omitted,  because  hardly  metrical,  and  not  exactly  consistent  with  i\  i, 

which  appeals  to  Vahwe's  righteousness  (see,  however,  Ba.  and  Du.). 

S  f.  M  D'^ir  -ri'IlD.  Read  ':'^i;::^T  -/I^DD  (asxxxi.  I3,lxxxviii.6). 
Read  nar^m  (lxxvii/4.  cxUi.  4).  nQni<i  has  been  restored  in  Iv.^s, 
Ixxiii.  z\a. 

i:  f.  M  ""^33  (Pasek  follows;.  Read  ""i^ElDDJ-  So  again  in  /.  26 
(for  ^TDD)-  Tfn  nn'^D  in  v.  7,  which  is  metrically  superfluous,  may 
be  a  gloss  on  TISDDJ-     Tb'O  (7'.  6,  end),  as  often,  comes  from  DM'?>i- 

19.     Insert  (from  xxviii.  I)   ""^Qr^    "^VX}.^    '*?" 

21.     Read  "J^^aTn  (Cir.,  Che.  -,  Du.i. 

25.  Read  ^IIJ'D  (cp.  on  /.  5).— 26.  M  ^D^DB,  surely  not  reflexive. 
G  KaTk^vyov  —  ^'pioi-  Read  ''r)3DD2.  which  accounts  for  both  readings. 
Gr.,  "'/T'lp;     Bachm.,  Pa.  'jTBH  ;  'too  arbitrary. 

30.    M  lii:^'':^  V"^^?^-    '^^'^^  probably  ivjr::  V'}.^^"2• 

34.  M  Tj-npnZll.  Read  TypTj^l.  Here  a^ain  we  see  that  pi2i 
and  ion  are  liable  to  confusion. 

PSALM    CXLIV.— I. 

i  KiMiiTEKS.  A  coml)i nation  of  passages  chiefly  from  Ps.  xviii.,  but  also  from 
Pss.  xxxiii.  and  civ.  relative  to  divine  deliverance  from  trouble,  and  an  application 
of  these  to  pious  Israel's  sufferings  from  their  treacherous  N.  Arabian  (not  Syrian) 
enemies  {v.  11).  The  parallel  passages  are  —  v.  i,  cp.  xviii.  35,  46  f.  ;  v.  2,  cp. 
xviii.  3,  48;  V.  5flr,  cp.  xviii.  io«  ;  v.  5/',  cp.  civ.  32/';  v.  6,  cp.  xviii.  15;  v.  7, 
cp.  xviii.  17;  V.  9,  cp.  xxxiii.  2  f  ;   7'.  10,   cp.  xviii.  51. 

Of  'Arab-ethaii.  I 

I  Blessed  be  Yalnve  my  Rock, 

[Exalted  be  God  my  succour,] 

Who  trains  my  hands  tc^  war. 

My  fingers  to  battle  ; 

My  righteousness,  my  fortress,'  mine  a53-lum,  2 

My  shield,  he  in  whom  I  take  refuge  ; 

*  *  *  *p 

Who  crushes  the  peoples  beneath  me.- 

'  My   sure    retreat. 

-  Vahwc  I  what  is  man  that  thou  shouldest  notice  him? 

Frail  man,  that  thou  shouldest  value  him? 

Man  is  like  a  breath, 

His  days  arc  as  a  shadow  that  passes  away  {vv.  3  f.>. 


PSALM     CXLIV. — I,  2.  23  I 

O  Yahwe  !  bow  the  heavens,  and  come  down,  5 

10  Touch  the  mountains,  that  they  smoke, 

Hurl  forth  lightnings  and  scatter  them,  6 

Shoot  out  thine  arrows  and  affright  them. 
Reach  forth  thy  hand  from  high  heaven,  7 

[Draw  me]  out  of  the  vast  waters  ; 

*  *  *  * 

O  Yahwe  !  I  will  sing  a  new  song  unto  thee,  9 

With  lute  and  horn  will  I  play  unto  thee, 
(The  God)  who  gave  succour  to  his  king,  10 

20  Who  rescued  David  his  servant. 

From  the  sword  of  Jerahmeel  rescue  thou  me,  1 1 

Deliver  me  from  the  hand  of  foreigners, 

Whose  mouth  speaks  falsehood. 

And  whose  contract  is  a  contract  of  lies.' 


PSALM    CXLIV.— 2. 

1  RIMETERS.  A  fragment  dcscrihing  the  felicity  of  the  people  that  worships 
\'ahwe.  Cp.  cxxvii.*-),  cxxviii.  How  came  the  fragment  here?  I'robably  by 
mere  accident.  The  passage  had  to  be  preserved,  and  at  the  end  of  this 
composite  psahn  there  seemed  to  be  a  suitable  place.     According  to   most,  it 

was  linked  to  the  preceding  psalm  by  "lii^hJ-     Possibly  the  editor  meant  vi.-  to 

understand  'I  will  sing  unto  thee  (-'.  9)  because/  &c.,  making  vv.  12-15  virtually 

the  'new  song'  spoken  of,  but  'A  2  E'  J  give  "l^S  the  sense  of  'in  order  that.' 

Cp.  Kon.,  Synt.,  §  396^.      The  truth,  however,  probal)ly  is  that  ")l^^}  =  l^tt^J* 

(the  N.  Arabian  Asshur),  a  gloss  on  i'.  11. 

I  Our  sons  are  as  newly  planted  saplings,  iz 

Full-grown,  in  youthful  age  ; 
Our  daughters,  as  fruitful  (vines) 
Maturing  berries  of  a  cluster(?). 

[All]  our  stores  are  full,  13 

Suppl3'ing  both  oil  and  corn, 
Our  sheep  increasing  by  thousands. 
And  tens  of  thousands  in  our  fields. 

No  breaking-in  of  Ishmaelites,  14 

10  No  cry  of  woe  in  our  streets. 

Happy  the  people  that  is  in  such  a  case,  1 5 

Happy  the  people  whose  God  is  Yahwe  ! 

1  Asshur. 


232  THE    PSALMS. 

Critical  Notes,     (cxliv.'^')-     -•  SLip])licd  by  Diilim  from  xviii.  46^. 

5.  M  ^Ipn.  Krochm..  Gr.,  Che."  "•JDH.  Rather  ''plii  (see  on 
xviii.  i).  Confusion  of  IDH  and  p"i:i  (n  for  p,  D  for  iJ).— Omit  '•^^Or^, 
a  variant  to  ^niVia-— Read  *:d'?3DT  (see  on  xviii.  3).— 8.  M  lliH. 
Read  perhaps  S3ipn  ;  see  on  xviii.  48.— M  ''Dy.  Read  '"-qj?,  i.e. 
D^Qy  (xviii.  48).     So  some  MSS.  and  'A  J  T  S,  but  G  tov  XooV  /xou. 

The  insertion  after  t'.  2  reminds  us  of  viii.  5,  Job  viii.  9,  xiv.  2. 

9.     Read  W'^y^t),   with  Wellh.,  Duhm.— 11.  Read  D'*p121    (Gr.)  ;    so 
•  -  T  '.  t: 

xviii.  15. — 13.  Read  T|~T\  with  vss.,  and  not  a  few  MSS.  (Ba.,  We.,  Du.) 

14.  All  that  follows  DT1DD  in  ''•  7,  except  DO!  D'DQ,  is  erroneously 
repeated   from   v.    11.     13efore    '")  '}2   read   ''Jli^Q   (see   xviii.    17),   with 

Duhm.— 18.  Read  13ili^T  ^"213.  (see  on  xxxiii.  2l>). 
T        :       V  •• : 

19  f.  □o'?Q  probably  comes  from  "^j^]^,  and  this  from  S'^'^T^  (see 
xviii.  51).  —  n^"1  Il~)nD  is  an  unparalleled  phrase  which,  like  TT 
n^Vn  (Jer.  xlvi.  16  &c.),  comes  from  '^NDDl"'  2111^.  Attach  this  to 
^2iJ9  (cp.  G),  and  begin  /.  22  with  ^jy:inV 

(cxliv.'-').  I.  T27J^  should  probably  be  printed  ■^;^^*,  a  gloss  (see 
introd.,  p.  231). — M  J1^1T3  .  '\  seems  to  have  much  puzzled  the  ancients  ; 
G  for' instance  renders  KiKaKhunria-iiivai,  deriving  from  VT  'brilliance.' 
Most  moderns,  '  as  corner-pillars '  (continuing, '  carved  in  palace-fashion '). 
But  'pillars'  is  arbitrary,  and  what  right  have  we  to  think  of  Caryatides 
in  palaces  known  to  the  psalmist  ?  Comparing  cxxviii.  3,  Isa.  xvii.  6, 
read    JinM-— M    byr\    FYIII^     r\^21£ini2-       For    'HD    ('striped'.? 

•     :  T    ••  •  :    -  ,T  \  : 

'  hewn '  ?)  G  gives  TTfjHKfKoaixrjfifvm.     lUit  the  text  of  the  whole  passage 

needs  to  be  revised.     Read  perhaps  '''}2^'^   ''Zl-)_y  JliiO^Hp.     On  [O^n 
cp.  Del.  on  Cant.  ii.  13  ;  for  "^"^  'J^?  cp.  Num.  xiii.  22,  D''3J;i7  '?i3^hJ. 

5.  Insert  "^3  (with  Bi.),  which  easily  fell  out  after  S3\-f  or  '?Di:;j<.— 
M  IJ^ITD,  G  T«  Tdfie'ia  ovTwi/ (the  required  sense).  Such  a  word  as  1TQ 
{BDB  iic,  \/ niT)  is  unknown.  Wellh.,  ^I^JiQ,  'our  foods"?  Herz, 
^J''f2DNt  (Dt.  xxviii.  8,  Prov.  iii.  10).  ~]rbi>i  ]-1D-  G  (S)  «  tovtov  els 
T(WTo  =  'r\r7i^    7]-]'2  ;    cp.    Ixxv.  9,  G  S.     Surely    a    bad   guess.     ]V2  is 

probably  fiom  ]'0t  ;  ]T  from   |[:i]1.     Read   ^T'^K  T?*^*0  ;   cp.  Dt.  xi. 
14. 

9.  M  prefixes  to  7'.  5  D'^3DQ  ^riJl'?*^.  ^^bii  for  r]'7^^i>— the 
masc.  as  tieniis  epiea-ni/m  {XX.  vii.  13)? — 'pQ  '  burdened '—with  what? 
with  loads  (T,  Kimhi)  ?  with  flesh  {C,  iraxt'ii)  ?  with  the  fruit  of  the  womb 
(Ge.,  Ew.,  Hi.,  We.  with.?)?    All  equally  impossible.     Can  the  text  be 


PSALMS    CXLIV. — 2,    CXLV.  233 

right  ?  Besides,  why  should  the  kine  have  less  space  than  the  sheep  ? 
(Grimme's  reading  1^13  l'l^<  is  a  poor  makeshift).  The  word  which  first 
reveals  its  secret  is  D'''^Z1DD.  for  b2D,  like  ':5QD,  is  a  possible  corruption 
of  '^'NyQi:;^  (cp.  on  Ixxxi.  7^)  :  ^bii,  too,  sometimes  romes  from 
^^i^OCnT],  and  ^^  often  represents  an  original  D-  The  T  in  '3')'?K  may 
come  from  "1,  unless  indeed  it  is  an  interpretative  insertion.  Thus  we 
get  D^t'Wrjti;^  D^'?NQn"1\  These  two  words  are  alternatives.  Most 
probably  either  TTT'  or  ':21V''  should  stand  after  yiD  "|'»^}.  These  words 
too  have  exercised  the  older  interpreters.  But  followed  by  iimiJ  ^i^  it 
is  difficult  for  a  modern  scholar  to  doubt  ;  Y"13  means  a  breaking-in  of 
foes  into  the  land  or  into  a  city.  '  There  is  no  breaking-in  of  Ishmaelites  ' 
records  the  fact  tliat  Ishmaelite  raids  were  both  before  and  after  the 
Exile  one  of  the  chief  dangers  of  the  southern  Israelites.— But  what  of 
JlNiiV  (Vi^*))  ?  '  Probably  =  >  IVii^,'  says  Olshausen;  but  the  explanation 
of  ">  'J  is  not  so  easy.  Metrically  either  'DID  ''?^^  or  Jli^iJT*  V^*"'  '^ 
superfluous  ;  our  previous  criticism  leads  to  the  decision  that  it  is  the 
latter  which  is  intrusive,  and,  if  so,  it  seems  plain  that  D^?2JV  V^^^  ^^^ 
grown  out  of  a  dittographed  nm^  ^"'^J^• 


PSALM    CXLV. 

1  RIMETERS.  An  alphabetical  psalm,  of  which  one  distich  (that  beginning 
with  Nun)  is  wanting  in  M  ;  see  on  v.  13.  It  is  unoriginal,  but  well  sums 
up  the  Jewish  conception  of  the  character  of  Yahwe  ;  hence,  before  praying, 
said  R.  Jeshua  ben  Levi,  repeat  Ps.  cxlv.  It  has  an  affinity  with  the  next 
psalm   (v.  14);  cp.  vv.  i,  13  (Yahwe  as  king)  with  cxlvi.  10;  vv.  14,  20  with 

cxlvi.  8f. ;  V.  15a  with  cxlvi.  5  (l^tt')  ;  v.  1$^  vvith  cxlvi.  7.  nyTlD  (G  0, 
alvfois ;  'A,  vnfTiaii ;  2,  ti/xvos ;  T,  J^J^rT^li^lD)  nowhere  else  occurs  in  a 
heading,  though  D^^rT/l  is  the  title  of  the  v/hole  Book  (see  .ilso  on  Ixxii.  20). 

I      I  will  extol  thee,  my  God,  my  King,  I 

And  bless  thy  name  for  ever  and  ever. 

Every  day  will  I  bless  thee.  *  2 

And  praise  thy  name  for  ever  and  ever. 

Great  is  Yahwe,  and  highly  to  be  praised,  3 

And  his  greatness  is  unsearchable. 

One  generation  shall  laud  thy  works  to  another,  4 

They  shall  declare  thy  mighty  acts. 

Of  thy  glorious  brightness  shall  they  speak,  5 

10     Of  thy  wonders  shall  they  discourse  ; 

The  might  of  thy  terrible  acts  shall  they  utter,  6 

Thy  great  deeds  shall  they  rehearse. 


234  THE    PSALMS. 

The  recital  of  thy  plenteous  goodness  they  shall  pour 

forth,  7 

And  shout  for  joy  at  thy  righteousness. 

Full  of  pity  and  compassionate  is  Yahwe,  8 

Long-suffering,  and  of  great  lovingkindness. 

Good  is  Yahwe  to  all  [who  wait  for  him],  9 

And  his  compassion  is  over  all  who  take  refuge  in  him. 
All  who   take  refuge   in  thee  give  thanks  to    thee,  O 

Yahwe,  lo 

20     And  thy  loyal  ones  bless  thee. 

The  glory  of  thy  kingdom  do  they  utter,  1 1 

Of  thy  might  is  their  talk. 

To  make  known  to  men  Yahwe's  mighty  acts,  1 2 

And  the  brilliant  glory  of  his  kingdom. 

Thy  kingdom  is  a  kingdom  for  all  ages,  13 

And  thy  dominion  lasts  for  all  generations. 

Faithful  is  Yahwe  in  all  his  ways. 

And  full  of  lovingkindness  in  all  his  works. 

Yahwu  upholds  all  those  who  have  fallen,  14 

30     And  lifts  up  all  those  ^vho  are  bowed  down. 

The  eyes  of  all  wait  upon  thee,  15 

And  thou  givest  them  their  food  in  due  season. 

Thou  openest  thy  hand,  16 

And  fillest  all  that  lives  with  favour. 

Righteous  is  Yahwe  in  all  his  ways,  17 

And  full  of  lovingkindness  in  all  his  works. 

Yahwe  is  nigh  unto  all  those  who  call  upon  him,  18 

All  those  who  call  upon  him  in  truth. 

He  will  fulfil  the  desire  of  those  that  fear  him,  19 

40     He  will  hear  their  cry,  and  will  succour  them. 

Yahwe  preserves  all  those  who  love  him,  20 

But  all  the  wicked  he  will  destroy. 

My  mouth  shall  speak  the  praise  of  Yahwe,  21 

And  let  all  flesh  bless  his  holy  name.' 

•  For  ever  and  ever. 


PSALMS    CXLV.,    CXLVI.  235 

I.  Cp.  x\x.  2,  V.  3.-5.  Cp.  xlviii.  2.  iii.  33,  iv.  31.— 30.  ^pT,   so  cxlvi.   S  ; 

-9.   Cp.   /.   24. -1 3.    TT2i:2-21,  as  common  in  Aramaic.-3i  f.  As  civ.  27. 

,  ...  ^  =  ~  — "^A.  liljn,  either  'with  Vahwe's  fa- 

xxxi.  20,  Isa.  Ixin.  7.— V^3n>  ^^  •'^'^■-  3.  ''^     '       t 

liN.  S.-15  r.  See  ciii.  S,  Ex.  xxxiv.  6.-  vour,'  or  'with  each  one'.s  desire.'    But 

a  pronommal  siimx  can  more  easily  be 

Compassio)!a(e(n\n'y),cp.on  Ixxxvi.  15  dispensed  with  in  the  former  case  (cp. 

(Babylonian  affinity).  — 25  f.   Cj).  Dan.  v.  13,  Dt.  xxxiii.  23). 

Cri/ica/  Notes.  i.  M  ']"7:2r\  ^rht^-  Read  ^3^:j  'bii,  (G).  H  is 
dittographic— 9  f.  Read,  probably,  ■^li^Z)  IIl)  ;  ^-^i^  superfluous  '^^T^ 
may  be  from  a  ditto-r.  ni-— ?^I  '"^4"^"!  •  ^^^^^^  ^"^^T.  (^  ^'  ^^^""•' 
Bi.,  Ba.,  Che.i,  Kau..  We.)— M  nn^Ii'N  •  Read  T\'''V^  (G  S.  Kenn., 
virtually  Gr.). 

12.  Read  ^Mi"?!-)  or  T|>J-|iyi:)  (Kt.),  with  Kau.— AI  nDlBDSt  • 
Read  nSD'  ((■  S, 'virtually  Gr.)! 

17  ff.  Insert  Vlf^  (Bi-)-  G.  nui  vnofie'vovcri.  Cf.  Lam.  vii.  25. — 
Read,  probably.  '  jlhlH^  (/•<'•  H-  '.!).  Four  times  again  in  this 
psalm  there  is  a  transition  from  the  address  to  Yahwe  to  the  mention 
of  Yahwc  in  the  third  person  {-en:  3,  8,  14,  17).  So  Perles  {Ami/.  16), 
Konig  (T/i.  LBlatt,  Oct.  23,  '96,  cp.  Styl.  748),  and  Duhm.  The  Tetra- 
grammaton  was  represented  by  '^ ;  cp.  G,  Judg.  xix.  18.  Kut  G  S  J  give 
the  2nd  sing.  masc.  sutfix. 

27  f.  Insert  Vrp*^  ^'^'^  I'DHT  Vima  '^  ]*.2SJ  (Grot.,  CappelK, 
Ew..  Bi.,  (Jr..  Kau.).     Repetition  abounds  in  this  psalm. 

31,  11.     Insert    T\r\)^  (G,  Bi.,  Bii.) . 

T  - 

44.    Omit  lyT  Ziysyh  (Bi.).     Litin-gical  amplification. 


PSALM    CXLVI. 

1  KIMETERS.  The  suhject  is  tlie  essence  of  Vahwe's  being— his  creative  might, 
his  lovingkindncss  (including  justice),  his  eternity  as  king  of  Israel.  The  con- 
nexion of  this  psalm  with  I's.  cxiv.  has  been  noted.  Their  common  tone  of  praise 
led  to  the  grouping  of  Ps.  cxlvi.  with  Pss.  cxlvii.-cl.,  which  were  admitted  into 
the  daily  Jewish  morning  prayer.  At  an  earHer  time  Pss.  cxlvi. -cxlviii.  may 
perhaps  have  formed  an  independent  group  by  themselves.  At  any  rate,  this  is 
favoured  by  the  fact  that  in  G  P.ss.  cxlvi.-cxlviii.  (observe  that,  according 
to  the  numeration  of  G,  Ps.  cxlvii.  becomes  two  psalms)  have  the  heading, 
AAATjAouia.  ^ K-y^aiox)  Ka\  Zaxapt'ou.  What  G's  addition  to  KKKi\\ovia.  means 
is  no  doubt  uncertain.  Docs  it  mean  that  Haggai  and  Zechariah  actually  wrote 
these  psalms  (together  with   Pss.  cxii.,  cxxxviii.,  cxxxix.)  ?  or  may  we  include 

''jn  and  n^lDT  among  the  words  which  cover  over  ethnic  names  of  N.  Arabia? 

If  so,  '  of  the  Hagrites  and  the  Ashhurites '  (.see  General  Introd.)  will  be  a  not 
imsuitable  variant  to  'of  the  Jerahmeelitcs'  (transformed,  not  improbably,  into 

n^  l/zH).  Cp.  on  Ps.  cxxxvii.  Note  that  v.  4  appears  to  be  quoted  in 
I  Mace.  ii.  63. 


2j6  THE    PSALMS. 

Of  the  Jerahmee/ifes..  \ 

I  Praise  Yahwe,  O  my  soul, 

I  will  praise  Yahwb  while  I  live,  2 

I  will  chant  to  my  God  while  I  remain. 

Put  not  your  trust  in  princes,  3 

In  one  of  earth's  race  who  cannot  deliver  ; 
When  breath  fails,  he  becomes  earth  again,  4 

And  all  his  schemings  vanish. 

Happy  he  whose  help  is  the  God  of  Jacob,  5 

10  Whose  hope  is  in  Yahwe  his  God, 

Who  made  heaven  and  earth,  6 

The  sea  and  all  that  is  therein  ! 

Yahwe  watches  over  children. 

He  gives  bread  to  the  hungry  ;  7/^ 

Yahwe  looses  those  that  are  bound,  7<r 

He  executes  judgment  for  the  oppressed  ;  "ja 

Yahwe  opens  the  eyes  of  the  blind,  Sa 

Yahwe  raises  those  that  are  bowed  down  ;  %b 

Yahwe  watches  over  the  sojourners,  9^ 

20  He  makes  to  stand  the  orphan  and  the  widow  ;  9^ 

Yahwe  loves  the  righteous,  8r 

But  the  way  of  the  wicked  he  destroys.  9^ 

Yahwe  shall  reign  for  ever,  10 
+Yea,+  thy  God,  O  Zion  !  from  age  to  age. 

I.  A  slight  variation  of  the  opening  were  exposed  from  barbarous  captors  of 

words  of  Ps.  civ. — 3  f.   Cp.  civ.  33. —  cities   (see   e.g.   Hos.  x.    14).       Matt. 

5  f.  Cp.  cxviii.  8  f. — 7  f.   Cp.  civ.  29,  xviii.  10  is  hardly  parallel. — 19  f.   See 

1  Macc.ii.63(seecrit.n.). — \-}^.  Children.  on  xciv.  6,  and  cp.  Bcrlholet,  Siellung, 

Because  of  the  danger  to  whicii  chikhen  182. 

Critical  AWc.s:  4.  jM  ni^n.  Read  "-TT^yB  (see  on  civ.  33/').— 
7  f.  With  Griinme  read  2V^^  mi  NiJD ,  and  omit  the  useless  DV2 
Minn,  reading  "nQJ^T .  See  I  iMacc.  ii.  63,  and  cp.  Bickell,  Z/.  /  i^af/i. 
77/rr;/.,  1886,  p.  365.  I5i.  and  Du.  omit  imi  J^aj"1  altogether;  so  Che.<"» 
inserting  ^3,  which,  however,  is  not  enoiiyh  to  produce  a  clear  trimeter. 

— M   Vnii^Ii'i^ .      An    imaginary  word.       Read    V/lji^t'n   (Eccles.  vii. 
T         :  V  T         :   • 

25,  27,  29,  sing. ;  29,  plur.).     A  similar  correction  is  required  in  Jon.  i.  6. 
C,  ot  SttiXoyto-^ot  avTMv.—g.    The  3  in  "l~lTyil  may  he  ditlographed. 


PSALMS    CXLVI.,    CXLVII. — I.  237 

13-  M  Dt'ip'?  r\'2i^  ~)i2''^n,  against  parallelism;  note  that  the  other 
parts,  have  no  article.  Read,  probably.  D^'?'?iy~jni^  irS^i^  niiT  ;  H  is 
a  fragment  of  HIIIV 

20.  I\I  "Tliy  ;  G,  acaXi7/i\//-fT«t,  recognizing  the  same  word  here  as  in 
cxlvii.  6  (note).     Read,  probably,  TQP^     Herz,  "^jni^ ;  GrJitz,  ")]];>. 

22.  M  Jlljr*,  'he  makes  crooked'?  Read  n"^y^  (Lam.  iii.  9'.  G, 
ti(f>nvLf7. — 24.  G  S  J  omit  the  superfluous  n''l7/n  (so  cxlvii.-cxli.x.) 

PSALM    CXLVIL— I. 

1  RIMETERS.  A  call  to  the  people  to  praise  Yahwe  for  his  goodness  to  Israel 
and  to  tiie  earth.  Observe  (i)  how  the  thoughts  of  what  we  may  call  nature  and 
of  Israel  are  interwoven,  and  (2)  how  immediate  is  Yahwe's  relation  to  each 
sphere  of  activity.  In  separating  vv.  i-ii  from  the  rest  of  Ps.  cxlvii.  (in  M)  we 
follow  the  example  of  G  (cp.  on  I's.  cxvi.).  The  division  is  at  least  a  probable 
one.  Certainly  z'v.  12,  13  serve  the  same  purpose  as  vv.  i,  2  ;  note  also  that  a 
plurality  of  persons  is  addressed  in  w.  i-ii,  but  the  collective  personality  of 
'Jerusalem'  or  '  Zion  '  in  z'v.  12-20.  As  to  parallel  passages,  cp.  t'.  I  with 
cxxxv.  3,  xxxiii.  I  ;  z/.  2^  with  Isa.  Ivi.  S  (time  of  Nehemiali  ?)  ;  7'.  3  with  Isa. 
Ixi.  I  ;  z>v.  4  f.  with  Isa.  xl.  26,  28  ;  ?:  6  with  cxlvi.  7-9  ;  v.  9  with  cxlv.  15, 
Job  xxxviii.  41  (unless  with  Bateson  Wright  we  read  3"iy7) ;  v.  10  with 
xxxiii.  16  f.       Heading  in  G  as  in  cxlvi.  (see  introd.). 

0/  the  Jeraluucelites.  I 

I  Praise  Yah,  for  [Yahwe]  is  good,i 

Chant  hymns  [to]  our  God,  for  he  is  gracious. 
Yahwe  is  the  builder  of  Jerusalem,  2 

He  collects  the  outcasts  of  Israel  ; 

He  who  heals  the  broken  in  heart,  3 

And  binds  up  their  wounds  : 

He  counts  the  number  of  the  stars,  4 

And  gives  names  to  them  all. 

Great  is  our  Lord  and  plenteous  in  power,  5 

10  His  understanding  is  incalculable. 

Yahwe  makes  the  sufferers  to  stand,  6 

But  abases  the  wicked  to  the  ground. 

Sing  ye  to  Yahwe  with  thanksgiving,  7 

Chant  to  our  God  with  the  lyre. 

Who  covers  the  heavens  with  clouds,  8 

Who  prepares  rain  for  the  earth,^ 

*  Praise  is  seemly.  -  Who  makes  the  mountains  to  shoot  forth  grass. 


238  THE    PSALMS. 

Who  gives  to  the  beast  his  food,  9 

To  the  young  ravens  who  cry  to  him. 
His  pleasure  is  not  in  the  strength  of  a  horse,  10 

20  His  dehght  is  not  in  the  armour  of  a  man  ; 

Yahwe's  delight  is  in  those  that  fear  him,  11 

In  those  that  wait  for  his  lovingkindness. 

Critical  Notes,     i  f.  The  text  of  M  is  in  disorder.     Ci  gi\es  TV  '^T^ 
twice  over,  which  seems  right  ;   one  is  the  heading.     It  is  possible  to 
read    i"lQT  (cp.  xlvii.  7),  continuing    '^)f^  (Bi.,  Che.'",  Du.).      G   pre- 
supposes n~)?2T  nni:D,  continuing   Tb7\r\  TV^yV'^  irrt'^N':'.     But,  then, 
'^  '^  T  :  •        T  T  ■   :         T    .  :  .... 

how  shall  we  account  for  mN3?    The  affinity  between  the  closing  psalms 

T     T 

of  praise  suggests  correcting  //.  i  f.  on  the  model  of  cxxxv.  3,  and 
reading — 

So  far  Kautzsch  nearly  agrees.  Metre,  however,  bids  us  go  further,  and 
suggests  that  the  closing  words  in  M,  viz.  H'^nn  mhJJ ,  are  a  c^uotation 
from  xxxiii.  i,  where  certainly  they  are  much  more  suitable  than  here. 
They  are  probably  a  gloss  on  "yvj^  ^3,  inserted  after  TVTV  in  /.  i  had 
become  effaced  in  the  primary  codex. 

II.  M  nipD,  G  «i'«Ao/x/j(ii/wi'.  Read  probably  "TVOy^  (see  on  cxlvi.  9). 
Herz,  ")^^^<^J. — Read  D'^i^,  the  special  term  for  righteous  Israelites  as 
opposed  to  wicked  foreigners  (i\.  6,  13). 

16.    M  reads  (7/.  U)  T^in  DHn  PfQiian,  and  G's  Heb.  te.xt  added 

•  T  •  T    -    •  :  -  - 

Dli^n    rnili^"?   ^ii^yi  ;  both  insertions  from  civ.  14,  except  that  Qnn 

is  substituted  for  nDnn^— 18.  Insert  'h  (G  Gr.).— 20.  M  pi^.  By 
itself  it  is  strange  ;  if  it  were  Vt'J'lQ  7p  (Am.  ii.  1 5)  no  objection  could  be 
taken.  Gratz  P^JZl ;  rather  pll)2Il.  Sword  and  shield  are  needless  to 
the  servant  of  Yahwe  ('my  shield,'  xviii.  3). 


PSALM    CXLVII.— 2. 

i  KIMKTERS.     .\   summons  to  Jerusalem  based  on  similar  grounds  to  that  in 
cxlvii.'"      Heading   in  G   as   in  cxlvii."',    from  which  we  may  at  least  adopt 

in'!'7n>  or  rather  the  underlying  D^'^NDm^A  As  to  parallels,  comp.  v.  12 
with  cxlix.  2.b;  v.  \\a  with  Isa.  Ix.  17^;  r-.  14A  with  Ixxxi.  17;  v.  15  with 
Isa.  Iv.  10  f.  ;  V.  16  with  Ecchis.  xHii.  17  f.,  Ileb.  text  (comparison  of  snow 
to  lightning-flashes,  and  of  hoar-frost  to  salt);  v.  17  with  Job  xxxvii.  10; 
w.  19  f.  with  Dl.  iv.  7  f. 


PSALMS    CXLVII. — 2,    CXLVIII.  239 

Of  the  Jcrahincelites. 

I         Laud  Yahwe,  O  Jerusalem !  12 

Praise  thy  God,  O  Zion  ! 

For  he  has  strengthened  the  bars  of  thy  gates,  13 

And  has  blessed  thy  sons  within  thee. 

He  who  has  set  thy  borders  in  security,  14 

+And+  [from]  JerahmeeP  has  delivered  thee  ; 

Who  sends  his  commandment  to  the  earth —  15 

Very  swiftly  runs  his  word. 

Who  plucks  out  snow  like  wool,  16 

10         Who  scatters  hoar-frost  like  ashes  ; 

He  throws  down  his  ice  like  a  coverlet,  17 

By  reason  of  his  frost  the  waters  stand  still. 

He  sends  his  word  and  melts  them  ;  18 

Let  him  blow  with  his  wind,  the  waters  flow. 

He  ueclared  his  word  to  Jacob,  19 

His  statutes  and  laws  to  Israel. 

He  has  not  done  so  to  any  of  the  nations,  20 

His  laws  he  teaches  them  not. 

Crifical  Notes.  6.  Correct  in  accordance  with  Ixxxi.  17. — 9.  M  ]Jljn 
a  miserable  ||  to  ~)-TE)''-  Read  pjlirT. — 10.  M  D^P33,  'like  pieces  of 
bread,'  DflV  omitted,  as  in  Job  xxxi.  17  &c.  ?  'Ice'  instead  of  'hail- 
stones '  ?  Surely  not.  The  parallelism  shows  that  real  ice  is  meant. 
Read  probably  nnSCp'2  (n/  HBlO  'to  spread  out'),  Ruth  iii.  15,  Isa.  iii. 

22  ;  written    perhaps    '3lDQ-— 12.     M    ib^  "'.^   ij~!"ip   "l^-       An   in- 

-:-      •  t't     ••:  . 

tolerably  naive  exclamation.  Derenbourg  {ZA  TIV,  1885,  p.  163),  ^ibP^  ^D 
(cp.  Job  xxxvii.  10).  But  if  we  keep  ^J37,  this  will  mean,  'the  waters 
resist  his  frost '  (cp.  Ixxviii.  8).     Read  therefore  iJllpO  ;  D  fell  out  after 

t't.  , 

D^n9.  together  with  the  final  letters  of  the  two  next  words,  and  ^^3/  was 
inserted  to  make  sense.  Similarly  Duhm.  Now  we  get  a  contrast  to 
/.  13.— 18.  M  D^ri"''':'!!   D''tDDi:>Q"l-     Read  D^^T""?:!   VtaD;:'DT  (with  G). 

r:      -  '  T  :    '  ".-tt:. 

So  Kau.,  Du.,  and  partly  Bii. 

PSALM    CXLVIIL 

1  RIMETERS.  An  expansion  and  continuation  of  ciii.  20-22 ;  cp.  also  the 
'  Song  of  the  Three  Children.'  Nature  finds  a  voice  through  its  high  priest 
Israel,  and  Yahwc's  vassals,  the  kings  of  the  earth,  join  ((or  reasons  not  here 
expressed)  in  a  representative  procession,  chanting  hymns  to  the  only  'exalted  ' 
name.  The  parallelism  of  'kings'  and  'judges  of  the  earth'  recalls  ii.  10 
in  its  later  form  (M  G). 

1  Maacath. 


240  THE    PSALMS. 

Of  the  Jerahineelitei.  I 

I  Praise  Yahwc  froni  the  heavens, 

Praise  him  in  the  heights. 

Praise  ye  him,  all  his  angels,  2 

Praise  him,  all  his  host. 

Praise  ye  him,  sun  and  moon,  3 

Praise  him,  all  ye  shining  stars. 

Praise  him,  ye  heavens  of  heavens,  4 

And  ye  waters  ahove  the  heavens  ; 

Let  them  praise  the  name  of  Yahwe,  5 

10  For  he  commanded  and  they  were  created. 

And  he  gave  them  a  station  for  ever  and  ever,  6 

He  appointed  a  law  which  they  cannot  transgress. 

Praise  Yahwe  from  the  earth,  7 

Ye  dragons  and  all  ocean -floods  ; 

Fire  and  hail,  snow  and  ice,  8 

Storm-wind  fulfilling  his  word  ; 

Mountains  and  all  hills,  9 

Fruit-trees  and  all  cedars  ; 

Wild  beasts  and  all  cattle,  10 

20  Creeping  things  and  birds  that  fly  ; 

Kings  of  the  earth  and  all  peoples,  1 1 

Princes  and  all  judges  of  the  earth, 

Young  men  and  also  maidens,  12 

Old  men  beside  boys  ; 

Let  them  praise  the  name  of  Yahwe,  13 

For  his  name  alone  is  exalted  ; ' 

Let  them  chant  with  the  lyre  to  our  God,  14 

Songs  of  praise  have  all  his  loyal  ones.- 


4.  Cp.  Josh.  V.  13-15,  I  K.  x.\ii.  19.  V.  22,  also  Jer.  xxxi.  35  f.,  xxxiii.  25. 

— 7.  Heavens  of  heavens,  as  Dt.  x.  14,  See  crit.  note. — 14.  Dragons,  as  Gen. 

I  K.  viii.  27,  2  Chr.  ii.  5.    The  hii;liest  i.  21.      See   on   Ixxiv.    13. — 15.    It    is 

heavens    are    meant,    the    Bal)ylonian  heavenly  fire  that  is  meant,  accompanied 

'  heaven  of  Anu.' — 12.  Cp.  civ.  9,  Jer.  by  hail  (Ex.  ix.  24). 


'  His  majesty  is  above  earth  and  heaven. 
-  The  sons  of  Israel,  the  people  of  Jacob. 


PSALMS    CXLVIIII.,    CXLIX.  24I 

Critical  Notes.     2.     Read    Ti>J3Ji    i^^-),   ;^s    in     ciii.    21.      Kr.    was 

T  : 

(unnecessarily)  suggested  by  the  plural  \eib  (cp.  Schrader,  Jahrb.  f. 
prot.  TJteoI.,  1876,  p.  316).— 8.  Omit  'W)^  (Giimme;  metreV— 9.  After 
*3   (".   S  presuppose   \1^1  "IQM  ^^'^  from   xxxiii.  9. 

•  V-  -  T 

12.  Read  IIDJ?''  with  01..  15i..  Che.  ",  Bii.,  We..  Kau.,  Du.— 15.  M 
"^VJ^pT  J/l£^,  'snow  and  smoke'  (or,  'vapour')?  G  K/n'o-ToXXoy  ; 
similarly  S  J.     Read  JT^pl. 

26.  M  adds  Q\2i:n  V"^^<  '''>V  mn,  an  editorial  pardphra-e  of  lyV^ 
XW-  Duhm  retains  this  in  the  text  with  Vl^DH  '^d'?  7bT\T\  as  the 
parallel  line.  But  the  parallelism  is  not  at  all  good,  and  this  view  goes 
together  with  the  assumption  that  %'.  \^,a  and  r  are  a  distich  which  has 
come  in  from  the  margin,  has  no  relation  to  the  contents  of  the  psalm, 
and  differs  stylistically  from  its  present  context.  But  how  came  such  a 
distich  into  the  margin?  If  it  was  an  illustrative  note,  what  is  the 
passage  which  it  can  have  been  meant  to  illustrate?  The  truth  is  that 
the  case  is  analogous  to  that  of  cxlvi.  6/;  and  other  passages,  where 
fragments  of  the  original  texts  have  been  worked  up  conjecturally  by  the 
editor.  Rend  (comparing  cxlix.  3)  irnt'N['?]  ~li)D"2]  "lIDT,  to  which 
'n  7D7  'jl  forms  a  parallel.  The  closing  words  have  also,  not  un- 
naturally, puzzled  the  critics.  What  can  iHHp  UV  '-"ean  ?  'The  people 
of  his  neighbour '  (or  '  relative')?     G   and  J    render   as  if  the)- read  Q^' 

17  ^np.     V3np  Di'  (Riehm,  Gr.,  Ba.)  is  an   improvement,  but   far  from 
"T  T    ':      - 

adequate  ;  ^~lp  is  altogether  unnatural  here.  Plainly  there  is  corruption, 
and  as  plainly  '"It^;^  "»33  needs  as  its  parallel  (3pr^)  Hipl'"'  QV- 


PSALM    CXLIX. 

1  KIMETKKS.  Israel  gives  tlianks  to  its  divine  Creator  and  King.  Contrast- 
ing with  Ps.  cxlviii.,  this  psalm  concedes  no  part  in  tlie  general  concert  of 
praise  to  the  kings  of  'the  nations,'  who  are  only  here  mentioned  as  the 
unwilling   fettered    subjects   of   Vahwe's  '  pious    ones.'      Many  think    that    the 

Q^T'Dn  ^"^"0  of  "'•  I  i^  the  avva.-ya>Yh  ' kaiZoiuiv  of  I  Mace.  ii.  41.  .Surely 
some  unusual  stimulus  must  have  been  needed  to  draw  the 'pious'  from  the 
ternple  or  the  student's  chamber  to  the  field  of  battle  {vv.  6-8).  Hence  as 
early  as  the  time  of  Theodore  our  psalm  was  assigned  to  the  Maccabaian  period. 
Tlieodore,  however,  found  a  reference  in  vv.  4-9  to  the  struggles  which  fol- 
lowed the  return  from  the  Exile — slruj^gles  of  which  we  liave,  it  would  appear, 
a  very  incomplete  tradition.  There  is  perhaps  no  suflicienl  reason  for  separat- 
ing Ps.  cxlix.  from  I'ss.  ii.  and  Ixxxiii.,  and  other  similar  works,  which  are  not 
necessarily  oi  a  Maccaba:an  date.  The  psalm  is  Messianic  in  the  wider 
sense ;  the  '  vengeance '  spoken  of  in  v.  7  is  eschatological  (cp.  Isa.  I\i.  2, 
Ixiii.  4,  &c.). 

II.  K 


242  Jill-:    PSAI.MS. 

Of  the  Jcrahiiicclitcs.  I 

I         Sing  unto  Yahwc  a  new  song, 

His  praise  in  the  assembly  of  the  pious. 

Let  Israel  rejoice  in  his  maker,  2 

Let  the  children  of  Zion  exult  in  their  king. 

Let  them  praise  his  name  with  the  pipe,  3 

Let  them  chant  to  liim  witii  timbrel  and  lyre. 

For  Yah  we  delights  in  his  people,  4 

The  afflicted  he  adorns  with  victory. 

Let  them  triumph  at  the  glory  of  the  pious,  5 

10         Let  them  shout  for  joy  at  the  blow  to  the  Cushites, 

Chants  of  praise  to  God  in  their  throats,  6 

Two-edged  swords  in  their  hands, 

To  execute  vengeance  on  the  nations,  7 

Punishments  on  the  peoples  ; 

To  bind  their  kings  with  chains,  8 

Their  honoured  ones  with  fetters  of  iron  ; 

To  execute  upon  them  the  doom  that  is  written,  9 

An  honour  is  this  for  all  his  pious  ones. 

I.  A  new  soniT.     Seu  vul.  i.,   p.  overthrew  of  nil  opponents  of  Yahwe 

13S    (on   xxxiii.   3).  —  3.    His   maker.  mmX  his  people.     Cp.  Isa.  .\xxiv.  2,  5  ; 

Cp.   xcv.  6,  c.  3.  —  10.    The   Cushites.  Ixiii.  1-6.  — 17.    That  is  written.     See 

The  crusliing  defeat  ((13:2)  of  the  N.  -^-S-  ^^-  ^'''-  2  (relative  to  the  Rehoboth- 

Aral.ian  foe  (so  often  prayed  for,  and  '^f  J /''""   Ashhunles,    &c. ;    see    Crit. 

now  accomplished)  was  typical  of  the  J^i'-)- 

Critical  iWotes.  5.  '?"in'J  i-^  cither  niiswritlen  for  '?"''7n,  or  a  synonym 
for  that  word.  So  cl.  4.-8.  Read  D'^^JJ?  (as  before').— 9.  M  D'^l'DPT 
TIQDjI.  '33  is  very  variously  explained.  If  correct,  the  word  plainly 
needs  a  complement  ;  311333  or  "^  11333  \vould  be  clear,  but  11333 
is  not  clear.  Jul.  Bohmer  is  of  opinion  that  '  used  absolutely  as  here,  '3 
can  only  be  a  term  for  God'  {Das  lublisehe  'Im  Nanien^'  p.  48  ;  cp.  Exp. 
7\,  April  1903,  pp.  334  ii.'^).  liut  what  sound  evidence  is  there  for  such  a 
use  of  1133  •''  I  he  text  must  tiicrcfore  be  questioned,  especially  when 
in  the  parallel  line  we  find  an  e(|ually  obscure  word,  which  even  Bohmer 
questions.  The  simplest  remedy  is  to  transpose,  readin.t;  Dn^DH  11333- 
This  fits  in  with  a  very  probable  correction  of  'li^Q'tT-  The  alternative 
is  to  read  11J33  (cp.  on  xxx.  13)  ;  but  note  nj3  in  ?'.  3, 

'  Cp.  Jij^p.  7'.,  M.-iy,  lip.  3S2  ft. ;  July,  pp.  4S7  f  :  .\ug.,  pp.  526  f.  (Konig). 


PSALMS    CXLIX.,    CL.  243 

10.     M  DmZl3'I'rj~'?P,  'upon  iheir  beds' y      Cp.  Ixxvii.  7,  Job  xxxv. 
T        :  :    ■       - 

10  (songs  in  the  night),  but  the  text  is  disputed.  Hohmer's  doubts  are 
well  founded.  Read  D'iy3  DSQ"'?!^  ;  transposition.— 1 1.  M  ni^^i"). 
Plural  form  ?  or  (Barth),  singular?  If  pku".,  cp.  the  sing,  from  QDl")  (but 
Kaer  DQII),  Ixvi.  17,  but  the  text  is  doubtful.     Read  probably  Jlil^QT. 


PSALM    CL. 

1  RIMETKKS.       'The   finale  of  the    spirilual    concert:   angels   and  men    praise 
Yaliwe.'      Cp.  i's.  cxlviii. 

Of  i/ie  JeraluiueUtes.  I 

I  Praise  God  in  his  sanctuary, 

Praise  him  in  his  strong  firmament  ; 

Praise  him  for  his  mighty  deeds,  2 

Praise  liim  according  to  his  manifold  greatness  ; 

Praise  him  with  the  blast  of  the  horn,  3 

Praise  him  with  harp  and  lyre  ; 

Praise  him  with  timbrel  and  pipe,  4 

Praise  him  with  the  sweet  notes  of  the  flute  ; 

Praise  him  with  cymbals  of  Ishmael,  5 

10  Praise  him  with  cymbals  that  clang  ; 

Let  everything  that  has  breath  praise  Yah  !  6 

Praise  Yah  !      [Praise  Yah  !] 

I.  His  sanctuary;    the  heavenly  instruments  for  tlie  Levites.     The  men- 

or    llie  earthly?     The  parallelism  and  tion  of  the  cymbals  seems  to  have  ex- 

cxlviii.    I    favour  the    former  view   (so  hausted  the  psalmist's  list  of  instruments, 

Del.,  Du.).    See,  however,  Ba.'s  note.  for  the 'cymbals  of  Ishmael '  (see  crit.n.) 

— 5-10.  The  horn  was  for  the  priests;  were  presumably  those  which  gave  the 

the  limbrel  for  the  women  ;   the  other  loudest  sound. 

Critical    Notes.      7.    '^IflD  ;    see   on    cxlix.  3.-8.    M  ^JJTI    D^.DQI1- 

T  \  :         .   .  : 

D"*2D,  like  ^JO  in  xlv.  9,  is  surely  corrupt,  the  meaning 'harp-strings ' 
being  quite  imaginary,  and  suitable  in  neither  of  the  passages  in  which 
D^3?D  (^JO  in  xlv.  9  being,  it  is  said,  =  '"'J^)  can  be  supposed  to  occur. 
Re.\d  here  np'»yp:i.  See  Sirach  xl.  9,  Heb.,  and  cp.  on  Ixxxi.  3<5,  xcii.  4, 
and  Nestle,  Marginalien,  p.  10  (with  remark  in  Crit.  Bib.  on  2  S.  xxiii. 
i).     .\  late  Hebrew  usage  need  not  surprise  us. 


244  '^^''■'    r-SALMS. 

<■)•  M  y'^'iZ^'^y^*^^^.  Most  explain  '  with  clear-sounding  cymbals  ' ; 
KV,  however,  'with  loud  cyinl)als,'  no  doubt  because  of  i  Chr.  xvi.  5. 
But  is  yi^SIi^O  certainly  right  in  that  passage  ?  Kautzsch  produces  an 
excellent  sense  by  virtually  reading  IVOD  D"'i-*\'2ti'D  ;  but  what  right  has 
he  to  do  this?  Experience  of  the  many  corrupt  forms  of  7S3^rjli^' 
suggests  that  both  yr^tt^  and  p^i^^^ro  may  come  from  that  ethnic  name 
{,":2V*  jj  and  'l^li^^  ''j"l'?l»rO).  As  the  story  of  Hiram  shows  (see  Crit. 
Bib.  on  I  K.  vii.  13  f..  46),  the  working  of  copper  was  a  speciality  of  the 
Ishmaelite  or  Jerahmeelite  neighbours  of  the  Jews. 

I  2.  Possibly  the  '  Hallelujah  '  at  the  close  of  this  psalm  (M  G)  forms 
a  part  of  the  text,  and  should  be  repeated  to  complete  the  verse. 


END  OF   \Ol.    II. 


INDEX. 


'^  TJu  Roman  numerals  refer  to  pages  of  the  Introduction. 


Arabia,    Nortli,    in    history,    xiii.    ff., 

xvii.  fif. 

in  eschalology,  i.  4,  121,  tVc. 

its  products,  ii.  120,  244 

Artaxerxes  Oclius,  xxv.,  Ixii.;  ii.  91 
Assyrian   and    Babylonian    words    and 

usages  compared,  i.  1 1 ,  93,  lOO,  148, 

225,  247,  312;  ii.  85,  182 

Baliel,  meaning  of,  xvii.,  xi\. ;  ii.  208, 

210 
Babylonian  influences,  xxiii. 
Baca-trees,  riddle  of,  ii.  57 
Barnes,  Dr.  W.  E.,  ii.  209 
Bethel,  the  southern,  ii.  16 
Belh-ishmael , supposed  temple  of,  xix .  fT. ; 

ii.  157,  184,  197,  202,  204 
Bible-study  in  early    [udaism,   i.  2  ;    ii. 

167 
Briggs,   Dr.   (',.  A.,  xli.  110/ c  ',   Iv.   ff.; 

ii.  89 
—  Miss  E.,  xli.  note-  ' 
Budge,  Dr-  E.  A.  W.,  controverted  by 

Winckler,  xiv.   nole^  (where  'Jan.' 

should  be  '  April ') 

Cai''ii\  ITIES,  scenes  of  the,  xvi.,  i.  184  ; 

ii.  208,  227 
Carchemish,  mina  of,  i.  201 
Charles,  R.  H.  (on  Pss.  xlix.,  Ixxiii.), 

xxxiv.,  i.  317 
Chronicler,  relation  of,  to  Psalms,  ix.  f. 
Conversion  of  nations,  xii.;  ii.  103,  &c. 
Critica  Biblica,  xv.  f.,   xlii.,  I.   note  '"', 

lix.,    Ixix.    note  ^    (wiiere    add    'also 

Josh,  and  Juilg."),  Ixxi.;   i.    loi  ;    ii. 

208 

Davison,  Prof.,  xiii.  note  ' 
Deniers,  see  Rknegades 


Driver,  Dr.  S.  K.,  Ixii.  note  ' ;  ii.  3,  1 1, 

13,  161,  201 
Duhm,    B.,  xi.,   xxxii.,   Ixiii.,  Ixvii.  f., 

i-  l^Z^  319;  >'•  18,  89,  91,  &c. 

Eden-jekah.mkei,,   destruction    of,   ii. 

i68,"i79 
Ephrathah,  situation  of,  ii.  200 
Ezekiel,  on  new  temple,  xx.  note  • 

Gladstonk,  W.  E.,  on  Captivity,  xvii. 
God,  Israel's,  his  glory  in  pardoning,  xii. 

name  of,  lix.  f. 

Gray,  Dr.  G.  B.,  xxxiii. 
Grimme,  H.,  xlviii.  note  ',  Ixvii.;  Ixxi. 
Gunkel,  H.,  xvii.,  Ixx.;  i.  297,  333  ff.; 
ii.  63 

Hereticai.  books,  referred  to,  ii.  167 

Hogg,  Prof.  H.  W.,  xiv. 

Ilommel,  F.,  on  a  Babylonian  psalm, 

xxiv.  ;  on  the  S.  Asshur,  xiv.  note  '  ; 

on  '  Bir '  as  a  name  of  Yahwe,  i.  8 

Janps'-Kus,  Ale.xander,  ixiii.;  i.  3,  284, 

294  ;  ii.  73,  139 
Jerahmeel,  traditional  antiquity  of,  ii-  75 

KaU'IZSCH,  E.,  liii.  f.,  ii.  238 
Konig,    E.,     X.,    xli.,    Ixvi.    note  ';    i. 
282,  ..\:c. 

Lagarde,  p.  de,  xliv.,  lix.,  i.  i,  9, 
105,  294,  &c.  ;  ii.  164,  &c. 

Lebanon,  name  and  reference  of,  ques- 
tioned, i.  123,  288 

Legalism,  not  unspirilual,  ii.  168 

Leviathan,  i.  334  ;  ii.  121 

Metre,  Hebrew,  Ixvi.  f. ,  Ixix. 


246 


INDEX. 


Mother-church  of  Jerusalem,  ii.  56,  213 
Musical  instruments,  ii.  243  f. 
Mythology  in  Psahns,  i.  25,  76,  333  f. ; 
ii.  121 

Neubauer,  Ad.,  xxxiv.  f. 

Pasek,  importance  of,  Ixviii. 
Perfect,  precative,  i.  28;  ii.  50 
Psalmists,  the  organs  of  a  society,  xviii., 

Ixv.  f. 
Psalms,  of  Asaph,  xxxix.,  xlii. 

—  contents  of,  xxvi.-xxxii. 

—  of  David,  xxxv. 

—  of  Korah,  xxxvi.,  xlv. 

—  Maccabrean,  l\i.  f. ,  i.  198,  &c. 

—  royal,  xxxii. 

—  Solomonic,  xxxvi. 

—  of  the  'steps,'  xxxix. 

Psalter,  Sahidic,  Ixxi.  (add  reference  to 
Budge's  publication  of  portions), 
i.  165. 

Rahab,  riddle  of,  ii.  57 

Renegades,  hatred  of  Jewish,  i.  29,  31, 

45,    48  f..    Ill,  215  ff.,  226  f.,  317, 

319;  ii.  2 


Sanuay,  Dr.  W.,  xxxv.,  Ivi.  note  ^ 
Scepticism,  early  Jewish,  xiii.;  i.  170, 

317  ;  ii.  90  f- 
Selak,  origin  of,  xl.  f.,  xlviii. 
Shenazzar  and  Sheshbazzar,  xix. 
Shimron,  the  southern,  xx. 
Sievers,  E.,  Ixvii.  note  " 
Sirach,    referred    to,    lix.,    Ixii.,    Ixvi. ; 

i.  1865  ii.  178,  206,  225 
Smend,    R.,    ix.    note   ',    Ixv.    note    '; 

ii.  50 
Smith,    Prof.    Robertson,    xxv.    note  ^, 

xxxvi.,  Iv.  note"^,  Ixii.,  Ixx.,  i.  194, 

284 
'  Son  of  God,'  in  Ps.  ii,,  i.  50 

Technical  terms  in  text,  xxxviii.  ft'. 
Temple-ministers,    xvii.,     xxi.    note  •*, 
xxii.,  xxxiv.  ff. 

ViNDiCTiVENESS,  xi.;  ii.  139 

WellhauSEN,  Jul.,    Ixi.,   Ixiii.,  Ixxi.; 
ii.  56,  209,  &c. 

Zoroastrianism,  references  to,  xxiii.  f., 
i.  49,  225  ;  ii.  120 


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